Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

        I open my eyes once again to a bright, white world.

When I had first awoken in the Memverse a few months before, during the time Order had taken control, I had found the place unsettling. Now that it was safely back under Marina's supervision, however, the Order Sector of the Memverse was becoming like a second home to me. It also helped that I, along with Marina, Pearl, and Acht had worked for hours on end to clean the place up after all of the palettes had been reconfigured. Our work had paid off.

With towering buildings on either side, the Order Sector is a near-exact replica of Inkopolis Square. The only noticeable differences are the looming Spire of Order before me, rising much higher than Inkopolis' own Deca Tower, and of course, the near absence of color from the entire world. Aside from the peachy-colored sky and the occasional blue or pink creature wandering quietly about, everything in the Order Sector is colored an even off-white.

I get to my feet, stretching, brushing off my suit as I habitually do, and then I begin crossing the whitewashed Square in the direction of the Deca Tower. I don't hurry; I don't have to. I enjoy taking in the increasingly comfortable atmosphere of the place.

These streets, which had once been covered in a thick layer of white ash, had finally been swept clean after Marina put an end to Smollusk's memory burning. The bleached coral that had originally been growing like weeds all over the Order Sector had been trimmed back to manageable patches. The replica shops and other buildings surrounding the Square had been fixed up, too. Cipher, one of the Memverse's AIs, had taken up residence in what would have been Inkopolis News Studio in the real world. Their strange wares were displayed behind the studio's large glass wall on a shelf Marina had created for it, though I was pretty sure I was the prawn's only customer. The rest of the Square's buildings remained empty, but at least they looked nice on the outside. The Spire of Order was the only thing that didn't seem to have changed at all; It still towered high above the simulated city, a magnet for attention.

I was a bit surprised that Smollusk had endured so many changes to its world without complaint, but I supposed it might reason that a nice, clean city is more orderly than what the Order Sector had once been. Most of the time, Smollusk’s reasoning for anything it thought or did was beyond me.

I finally reach the base of the Spire, where Pearl and Marina had been sitting in wait on one of the newly installed benches. They seemed to have been deep in conversation when I arrived, but they put a hold on it upon seeing me.

"Hey, Eight!" Marina says, smiling.

Pearl gives me a "Yo!" of greeting, a fist bump, and room to sit on the bench as she scoots over.

"Hello," I say with a small smile, taking my seat. "I hope I did not interrupt anything."

"You're all good," Pearl says, waving a hand dismissively.

"It wasn't anything important," Marina agrees.

I nod. The two did seem to have unimportant conversations quite often.

"Will Acht be with us today?" I ask.

"They said they were going to," Marina says.

"Ah, nice."

No one said it outright, but we all understood: they would be late. Whether Acht found it fashionable or simply had a horrible sense of time, they always seemed to arrive late when they chose to join us at all. Though I was sure Acht cared about the Memverse just as much as the rest of us, they had recently become too busy to join us every day. No one blamed them for it; they had a lot of stolen years of their life they needed to catch up on. Either way, we'd get started without them.

"So what's the plan for today, 'Rina?" Pearl asks.

"Not much, really," Marina says, grabbing her laptop from the bench beside her and opening it on her lap. "I just have to run diagnostics and do a general check-up on the state of Order Sector before we move on, so you two are free for now. I'll let you know if I find anything interesting."

"Sweet!" Pearl grins and jumps off the bench, transforming into her drone form with a burst of golden polygons. Pearl was strangely fond of her drone body; Marina and I both theorized that it was because, with it, she could reach heights she was unable to in the real world.

"Would you like to practice in the Foyer while we wait?" I ask, getting to my feet despite only having just sat down.

"Heck yeah," Pearl replies, doing a little flip in the air. The squid took every chance to use her drone abilities, and practicing in the ground level was the next best thing to climbing the Spire's higher floors.

"Have fun," Marina says, giving us another smile before turning her eyes to her screen.

And so the two of us make our way into the Spire of Order, leaving Marina to her laptop. The Foyer, which had at one time been dark and empty, was now full to the brim with training equipment. Lights danced in the air as Pearl and I practiced against the training dummies. Somehow, the lights and music only served to enhance my focus, the lighthearted ambiance of the place allowing me to let go of my worries for a while.

I'm not sure how long it had been before Marina came to get us. I had been practicing with the Charger against the ∞-ball, a combination that had frustrated me on several floors in the past. Pearl hovered by my side, occasionally spouting out a suggestion or a new idea. She was the first to notice Marina walk in.

"Hey!" she called to her, lightly bumping into my shoulder to get my attention. I turn toward Marina, letting go of my charger. Instead of dropping to the ground as a normal weapon would have, it simply dissolves into thin air.

Marina seems confused. Though she continues walking in our direction, her eyes remain locked on the laptop held out in front of her.

"Looks like you found something interesting, huh?" Pearl says, zipping over to the octoling. Marina stops, pointing to something on the screen just as I make it to her side.

"Interesting is a good way to put it," she says. "I'm not sure what to make of this."

"I have no idea what you're pointing at," Pearl admits, and I nod in agreement. Her laptop displayed several boxes of code that I'm sure only Marina could possibly understand. She seemed to be indicating a set of numbers that were increasing and decreasing in real-time. To Pearl and me, those numbers meant absolutely nothing.

"Oh! Right. Sorry," Marina says sheepishly. "Basically, I was checking up on the positions of entities throughout the Memverse, and—"

"I'm not following," Pearl says.

"Oh, uh... By entities, I mean the characters, sort of. All the users, like you and me, and all of the AIs. I track their positions just to make sure no one goes out of bounds or gets stuck. The last thing I want is for someone to fall through the floor and be lost forever!"

"That can happen?!"

"Technically yes, but I've done everything in my power to make sure it doesn't."

"Maybe you should just tell us what the problem is," I cut in, "It will take too much time to explain the workings behind it to us."

"Good idea," Marina sighs. "Long story short, there's an entity signal coming from beneath the Spire of Order. One that is definitely not supposed to be there."

Chapter Text

        "Beneath the Spire?" Pearl says, scrunching up her face. "Are they like... Stuck in the concrete?"

"No, actually, there are a few rooms down there," Marina says. "I used that space for storage of models and other various files. But it's not supposed to be accessible without admin permission, which is why I'm so confused. I know I didn't let anyone down there, and I can't imagine that Order would have given out permissions. I'll have to ask Smollusk about that..."

"Maybe someone fell through the floor like you were talking about, and they ended up down there," Pearl suggests.

Marina grimaces. "I took every measure to guarantee we wouldn't have problems with clipping, especially around the Square area. I guess it's possible, but it's not very likely."

"Well, what does it matter how they got down there?" Pearl says, "Let's go get 'em out! Then we can just ask them."

"You can give us the permission to go down there, yes?" I ask.

"Yeah. Give me a sec," Marina says. She turns her focus back to her screen, balancing it in one hand while clicking furiously on the keyboard with the other.

A minute or two later, she closes her laptop and looks up at us. "Alright, you should now have access to the storage floor. Be careful down there, you two. It wasn't exactly made with visitors in mind, and I'm not sure what Order might have done with the place while it was in charge."

"Stop worrying so much, we got this!" Pearl says, bouncing up and down in the air.

"We have been through far worse than a storage room," I say, smiling. Still, just in case...

I take a step back and hold my arms out to my sides, summoning the Order Dualies into my open hands. I had the most practice with these weapons, so they were always my first choice when we needed a quick and easy trip. Unless the lost AI turned out to be a jelleton, I probably wouldn't need them. Going into an unexplored new area, however, I felt safer with the dualies on hand.

"Ok, so... How do we get to the storage floor?" Pearl asks.

"There should be a new button in the elevator if it worked right," Marina says. The three of us make our way to the elevator, which indeed has a new button set below the others, seamlessly integrated as if it had always been there. It actually took me a moment to realize that it was new.

"There it is," Marina says, letting out a breath. "I'll be waiting up here, in case Acht shows up while you're away. You got this."

I nod as Marina steps out of the elevator. Pearl waves one of her drone wings goodbye, though she's vibrating with impatience. I press the new button, seeing no reason to make her wait any longer. The doors slide closed and the elevator rumbles to life. It bounces momentarily as if in resistance to this change of its usual direction, before beginning its descent into the uncharted depths of the Spire of Order.

"Geez, this is exciting," Pearl says over the hum of the moving elevator. "This is the first new floor we've explored in a while. I can't believe Marina didn't tell us about it!"

"...It's a storage room," I say.

"A secret storage room! Who knows what's stored there? Maybe we can find an unused boss jelleton."

"I think you are getting your hopes too high," I say, smiling. "Anyways, you will need to stay in the elevator to make sure it does not return to its original position. I do not want to get trapped down here."

"WHAT?!" Pearl exclaims, bobbing madly up and down. "Clam! I forgot about that! Where's Acht when you need them?"

"I will not take long," I promise.

"Why don't you stay in the elevator and I go find whoever's down here?"

"I have arms, legs, and weapons. And out of the two of us, I am more skilled in combat. I believe you have many Turf War losses to prove that."

Pearl stays quiet for a long moment. "Fine, I won't argue with that. Good luck out there!" She finally says.

As if on cue, the elevator door slides open to a gray room of an indeterminable size. The room is filled with hundreds or thousands of floating bluish crates of varying shapes and sizes, all evenly spaced and neatly arranged in rows like an enormous puzzle. The room appears to be lit only by the dim, cold glow emitting from the crates themselves.

Pearl whistles softly. For a long moment, I can only stare into the eerie room, with its endless rows of boxes stretching out as far as I can see. Finally, I let out a breath and step cautiously onto the storage floor. I glance back at Pearl, who nods encouragingly.

"Don't let your nerves get the better of you," she says.

"I will try not to," I say. Both of us know how much I hate being on my own. I wish I had asked Marina to come, but I knew someone should stay up there to explain to Acht where we had gone. I would be fine.

I make myself turn away. A few steps later, and I hear the elevator door close again behind me. Alone, with my dualies in hand and anxiety weighing on my chest, I enter the maze of crates.

I soon discover that each of the crates is partially transparent, displaying the strange contents within. Some don't contain anything but a small, three-dimensional file icon, similar in shape to Marina's Dev Diaries. Others contain spheres displaying various textures; items such as discs, ink bottles, and canned specials; weapons; bombs; and even whole, frozen jelletons. As I continued on, there were several embarrassing moments where I turned a corner and nearly jumped out of my skin as I came face to face with a boxed jelleton. Fortunately, there didn't seem to be any living ones here. Unfortunately, there didn't seem to be a single living thing at all, apart from me.

Weaving my way through the narrow spaces between walls of crates, I realize how big of a job this really is. I have no idea how large this room might be, and the lost entity could be anywhere. Within this maze of crates, I could walk right past them without noticing. Calling out to them would be ineffective. If the missing entity is one of the residents of the Order Sector, they will simply ignore me. If it's a jelleton, I don't want to let it know exactly where I am, though I know that's an irrational hope. Within the oppressive silence of the storage room, the mere sound of my footsteps would alert anyone to my location. All I can do is keep my ears open and my eyes peeled.

Time passes, and there is still no sign of the missing entity. The deeper I travel into the digital storage room, the stranger the contents of the crates become. Pink and blue fish-like creatures replace the jelletons, which, while much less intimidating in appearance, still unsettle me. The weapons start taking on more silver and blue hues rather than plain white. I find one crate containing what I can only assume is a canned special, only it's decorated with Pearl's icon instead of Marina's. Whatever comfort had been provided by the familiarity of the boxed objects is gone now. I only wish to find the entity soon so I can return to the safety of the elevator.

Then, I hear something.

My first thought is that I'm hallucinating. But when I stop and listen closely, I can tell. It's the distant, but unmistakable sound of footsteps. I pick up my pace, heading in the direction of the sound, relief dampening my anxiety just a bit. Jelletons don't have legs, which means that this must be one of the Order Sector's passive AIs. That should make my job easier, and a great deal less stressful.

I pause at intervals to listen for the footsteps and adjust my path accordingly. The sound steadily gets louder and louder, closer and closer, until I stop to listen for what must be the last time, and they're... Gone.

There's nothing. The room is completely silent, just as before. My heart sinks, but then I remind myself that the entity simply must have stopped moving. I remain still and quiet, but I don't hear the footsteps again. Had I imagined the sound after all? Maybe I should—

"Hello?"

I jump as the voice, real as anything, echoes unexpectedly from somewhere nearby. That voice... Though it sounded like an inkling, the odd, almost robotic quality to it clues me into what this truly is.

Oh.

Of course, in my eagerness to finish this job, I had forgotten about the one jelleton that did have legs.

"Hello?" The voice calls again. It sounds closer. I can now hear the footsteps again, and I picture the origin of those sounds wandering slowly toward me.

I stay quiet, readying my dualies.

Out of the dim light ahead, I spot a pair of glowing red eyes.

"Helloooo— oh!"

It cuts itself off as those round, red eyes lock onto me.

I don’t spare a moment staring at the thing. I won't give the Parallel Canon the pleasure of the first move.

Chapter Text

        Looking to give myself an advantage before I attack, I attempt to ink the ground directly in front of me. To my dismay, the grayish ink dissolves almost immediately. That will certainly make things more challenging, but the un-inkable floor also works against the Parallel Canon. This will be an interesting battle.

When my first tactic doesn't work, I charge straight toward my enemy instead. As they say, the best defense is a good offense. I abruptly dodge-roll to the left just before coming within range of the Parallel Canon's Order Shot, hoping both to confuse it and to avoid making myself too easy a target. Though it hadn't moved an inch since I initiated the battle, I won't take any chances. I had caught it by surprise with my sudden attack, but knowing Parallel Canons, the moment of weakness wouldn't last long.

The Parallel Canon finally raises its weapon just as I roll into shooting range. I let fly a spray of ink, continuing to dodge in circles around it, never staying in one place for long. Snapped out of its initial shock, the Parallel Canon now follows my movements with unnatural ease. It turns in place, keeping its face to me no matter which way I dodge-roll. Instead of shooting back, however, the Parallel Canon attempts to use its gun to block my attacks. It's an unexpected strategy, enough so to make me pause once I realize what it's doing. Parallel Canons were usually more than eager to take any chance to shoot at me, something I had been counting on.

"Gah! What are you doing?!" it gasps in my second of confusion, taking the chance to begin backing towards the wall of crates.

Huh. Parallel Canons don't normally try to retreat either, nor have I ever heard one say something like that. It's always "Secure the floor," "Intruders detected," or a similar overly monotonous quote.

I don't let it distract me for long. Parallel Canons were predictable at times, but they were also much craftier than any other jelleton. What's more, this one bears an eerie resemblance to Agent 4, with its short, black tentacles and pointed ears. That marks it as one of the leader types, who are far smarter and stronger than the average Parallel Canon. I wouldn't put it past the thing to have said what it did as a way to lure me into a false sense of security, and then attack me by surprise.

I dodge-roll to the Parallel Canon's side, but it spins around to block me yet again. It doesn't seem to be any less skilled than normal. For whatever reason, it's simply using its abilities to defend itself rather than attack me. I had never encountered a Parallel Canon that seemed to value its own life so much.

I dodge around again, and the Parallel Canon blocks, grunting as a bit of gray ink hits its leg. The Order Shot doesn't completely protect it from my ink, but it's doing a surprisingly good job. Still, it's only a matter of time before enough ink gets through to splat it. In this situation, endurance is key.

"Stop!" the Parallel Canon suddenly exclaims. "I don't want to fight you, Eight!"

I freeze, my dualies still pointed at the jelleton. A stupid moment of weakness, but interestingly, one that the Parallel Canon doesn't take advantage of.

"...How do you know my name?" I ask, not taking my eyes off its weapon.

This was the first time I had tried speaking to a Parallel Canon since my very first encounter with the things. Back then, I had been tricked by their inkling-like appearance and had tried to reason with them. They had sent me back to the first floor with no hesitation. Parallel Canons don't want to make conversation; they only want to finish the job, and they do so with a machine’s cruel efficiency. But there was something different about this one, something that made me decide to try again.

And it works. The Parallel Canon answers.

"How do I know your name?" it says, breathing heavily. Or, at least, mimicking the sound of breathing. "Yeah, it's not like we've been friends for years now. No, we're complete and total strangers. Never met in our lives. Now why the shell are you attacking me?"

"What are you talking about?" I say, taken aback by the jelleton's irritated tone. Parallel Canons never showed that much emotion.

"You mean to say you don't remember me?" the Parallel Canon says, tilting its head. "You don't even have the slightest idea who I am?"

"...No?"

"You and your memory problems, Eight. I guess I do look and sound a little different, for whatever reason, but I thought I'd still be recognizable enough." it sighs, glancing at its dim reflection in the crate beside it. "Can you put down the guns, please? They're a tiny little bit distracting."

"No," I say. "You have given me no reason to trust you. You may just shoot me as soon as I let my guard down."

"Fine, watch this." the Parallel Canon lifts its Order Shot. I tense, but instead of attacking, it throws the gun off into the darkness with surprising force. We wait in silence until, a few seconds later, the clatter of a weapon hitting the floor echoes through the room. This doesn't do much to comfort me, since I know that the jelleton can summon the Order Shot into its hand at a moment's notice, although doing so would take a precious second. This is the perfect opening for me to take the Parallel Canon out, but... something stops me. Curiosity is a dangerous thing, and a rather prominent flaw of mine.

"There, I'm completely unarmed," it says, holding both hands up to prove it. "Now can you put down your dualies?"

After a second of hesitation, I lower the guns. Though they're no longer pointed directly at the Parallel Canon, having them in my hands still provides me with an important advantage. I can easily aim and shoot in the time that it would take for the Parallel Canon to summon its Order Shot.

"Thanks, that's much better," it says. "So, where were we?"

"You were going to tell me who you are, and why I should know you."

"Oh! That's an easy one. I'm Four."

Everything rushing through my head at that moment comes to a screeching halt.

I knew that the Parallel Canons were created to be like Four; that much had been clear from the moment I had seen them. Order had stolen the data Marina had collected from her and used it to create the monstrosities. Yet, none of the Parallel Canons had ever claimed any relation to Four, let alone that they were her. And none of them had talked like her, acted like her, claimed to know me just as the real Four did. None, except for this one.

"No. You cannot be Four," I finally say.

"Uh, yeah, I can," she replies. A very Four thing to say. "I think I would know if I wasn't me."

"Prove it, then. Or I will end this now."

Despite my threat, I find myself feeling increasingly reluctant to kill this Parallel Canon. I hope that this doesn't come through.

"Hmm, let me think," the one who claims to be Four says. "I got one! A few years back, when we'd been roommates for just a week or two, and you were still pretty new to the surface, I took you out to try seafood by the sea for the first time. But we forgot to check the reviews for this seafood shack, and you ended up getting food poisoning so bad you were vomiting up your guts the rest of the night. You never ate fish n' chips again after that. But anyways, at some point, you asked me how I wasn't sick too, and I said it was probably cause of all the grass I ate as a kid. That apparently led you to believe that grass was an inkling medicine, cause I caught you eating some the next day. You were super mad after you got sick off the grass since you had only just gotten through food poisoning. But, honestly, it was hilarious. I think about it a lot. Does that clear things up?"

Silence.

"...Yes," I say at last.

It's true. Only the real Four would know that. I had been too embarrassed to talk about it, and Four had promised not to tell a soul. Four never broke her promises.

It makes no sense, but it has to be her.

"So..." Four says, tilting her head. "You're not planning to kill me anymore, are you?"

"No. No, I am sorry," I say, lowering my head. I finally dismiss my dualies, watching them vanish from my hands in a flash of gold. It would have been the perfect chance for a Parallel Canon to attack, but she doesn't. This is Four.

"Phew! You know, you're super scary when you're fightin' serious."

I don't answer. My mind is elsewhere.

This is Four, I know it is. It can't be anyone else. But we had reconfigured Four's palette weeks ago, she should no longer have any connection to the Memverse. So why is she here now? And why does she look and sound exactly like a Parallel Canon?

All I know for sure is that something must be very, very wrong.

Chapter Text

        "You've been awfully quiet, Eight."

That voice. Every time she spoke, it startled me. It sounded like Four, yes, but so did every other Parallel Canon.

She's not one of them, I remind myself. Though I tell myself I have no doubts that the person following me is Four, her appearance disturbs me more than I am willing to admit. Every instinct in me screams to keep my guard up, to ready myself to fight or flee at a moment's notice. I ignore these thoughts as best I can, yet I find myself unable to release the tension from my muscles.

I don't want to look at her. I don't want her to see my thoughts, my apprehension. I don't want to see that expressionless silver mask of a face and have to tell myself, again, she's not an enemy. Yet, I still hear her footsteps behind me, feel those red eyes boring into my back. Even without looking, I see her perfectly in my mind's eye. I'm being followed, my senses scream. Of course I am, I'm the one who told her to follow me!

She won't attack me, even with my back to her. In our half-hour of walking together, she hadn't re-summoned her Order Shot. In return, I resisted the urge to bring back my own dualies. It’s a sign of trust.

I do trust her, don't I? There are plenty of other explanations for that itch to feel the safety of a weapon in hand.

Four isn't aware of the wrongness of this situation, and I hope to keep it that way. There is no need to worry her, especially if this turns out to be an easily fixable bug. I can’t tell her what’s wrong, and I shouldn’t make it so clear that something’s bothering me, but I can’t just act natural either.

"...Eight?" She says. It's only then that I realize I hadn't responded to her comment, over-thinking as I was. That about summed up the reason I was keeping quiet.

"Sorry," Is all I say.

There's another long period without conversation, the silence broken only by our echoing footsteps. I can sense Four's desire to speak again, a growing pressure caused by the words I know are building inside her.

She clears her throat. Mimicks the sound of it, at least. I'm still not sure how it works.

"...Are you alright?" She asks.

Just those three words, and I don't know what to say to them. I can't lie to her. I know that my anxiety is blatantly obvious in my body language, and even if that wasn't the case, Four had the often irritating ability to read people like books.

"Don't wanna tell me?" Four says after I take too long to think of a response. "Fine. Can you at least talk to me about something else? I haven't talked to anyone for hours. Or days. I honestly don't know how long it's been."

I start. "How— how long have you been down here?!"

"Girl, I literally just said that I have no idea. A while, at least. I would be bored out of my mind if this place wasn't too weird to be boring."

I go quiet again. I hadn't considered the possibility that Four could have been trapped on this floor since long before Marina discovered her signal. At least, from the sound of it, she hadn't been down here too long. I don't think I could have lived with myself if it turned out that Four had been alone here for months.

When I don't say anything, Four continues. "How 'bout you? You been here a while?"

"I have been in and out for a few months," I answer, pushing the morbid what-if scenarios from my mind.

"You know the way out?!" She exclaims. "I've been looking for an exit for forever! OH! That's where you're taking me, yeah? The exit?"

Four keeps going before I have a chance to answer.

"Where are we, anyway? You seem to know this place pretty well."

I wait a moment in case Four has something else to say, but she now seems to be waiting for my response.

"We are on the storage floor of the Spire of Order," I say. "And to answer your first question, yes, I am bringing you to the elevator. We can figure things out from there."

"Shell's the Spire of Order? Sounds ominous. We're in it right now?"

"...Yes."

She doesn't know what the Spire is. But had I really expected her too?

"Huh. And this elevator will get us out of it?" She asks.

"Yes."

"Oh, thank cod! This place gives me the creeps. Especially this section." I hear her tap one of the crates, probably the one I just passed that had contained a large jelleton. "I mostly hung back in that area where you found me, cause the fish in the boxes didn't look so evil. What are these anyway, do you know?"

"Jelletons."

"Ohhh, jelletons! That explains everything!" Four says, robotic voice dripping with sarcasm. "What are jelletons?"

"Enemies," I say. There wasn't much else to the things. Again, I find myself oddly surprised by the fact that she doesn't know this, though she couldn't have encountered any living ones down here.

"Enemies of who? You? I mean, they do look pretty... Malicious."

"Yes, they are enemies of mine," I say. "I have died to jelletons many times before."

"Oh," Four says in a strange tone of voice. "...But all of these ones are in boxes."

"Yes, they are."

"So there are places with living ones?"

"They live in the upper floors of the Spire."

"What are they? Where did they come from? You could have called me up about this, y'know. If these jelletons are a threat, I could bring in the NSS. Deal with 'em quick."

I stay quiet for a moment.

"What do you know?" I finally ask, a mixture of curiosity and concern getting the better of me. I have a feeling...

"I know how to do trigonometry. I'm really good at it, actually," Four says. "I also know how to disarm a bomb!"

A pause. I find that I'm unable to tell whether or not Four is being sarcastic again.

"If you mean what I know about this place," she continues, "The answer is absolutely nothing. I woke up in this room a while ago, with no clue as to how I got here. Or why I look like this."

So she doesn't know.

She must think this is real life, as I did when I had first awoken in the Memverse. How is she taking this so calmly? I had nearly had a panic attack when I first arrived here, and the Order Sector is much less anxiety-inducing than the horrible silence of the endless, dark storage room. But, I suppose, this is Four. The thing she was probably most worried about was not having someone to talk to.

"Is there something you're not telling me, Eight?" Four asks, noticing my lack of response. "You've been acting real weird since I found you, not to mention that you attacked me, no hesitation, the second you saw me. I know you know something you're not letting on. I’ve been really patient, but an explanation would be nice right about now."

Cod. How do I tell her? It might come as a relief that this is all a simulation, or it might scare her, as it did to me the first time. And if she guesses that something is wrong...

...No, this is Four we're talking about. She'll probably think it's the coolest thing ever. Who am I to keep this from her anyway? She will learn about it soon enough.

"This is the Memverse," I say. "It is a simulation that Marina created. None of this is real."

"Shoot, really? That's not even close what I was expecting..." Four says, faintly surprised. "Definitely better than everything I was thinking of, though. I didn't know something on this scale was possible. It's so immersive!"

Yep, that's Four. I can't help but smile a bit.

"Wait." She pauses. "...If this is a simulation, why am I here? I know for a fact I didn't log into any virtual reality."

"It is a long story," I sigh. "Once we make it out of the Spire, we can find a way to get you out of the Memverse."

"You mean I can't just log out?" Four asks. "What kind of game is this?"

"Again, long story."

Four whistles, a strange sound what with the mechanical filter.

"Alrighty then! Not how I thought today was gonna go, but it's always fun to have a little something new. As soon as we get out of this room, I wanna hear this long story of yours."

"Very well."

As we walk in silence for a while longer, I realize that I don't feel quite as tense as I did before. I suppose my conversation with Four eased my worries, dissipating whatever remnants of mistrust I had held since our one-sided battle. Yes, she looks like a Parallel Canon, and yes, that scares me. But this is the Four I know and love, even if she does look a bit different. I had been repeating that to myself as we walked, but only now do I really, whole-heartedly believe it. Upon realizing this, I abruptly stop in the middle of the path between crates, turning around to finally face her.

Four yelps as she nearly runs into me, but then I pull her the rest of the way. I hug her, her silver skin feeling unnaturally cold under my arms. A side effect of appearing as a Parallel Canon, I supposed. At the moment, I decide that I don't care.

It had been nearly a year since I had last seen Four in person. Ever since a few years ago, when she moved to the Splatlands along with the rest of the New Squidbeak Splatoon, we could barely find the time to visit each other. We still texted every now and again, but after years of separation, we had spoken less and less. It wasn't that the distance made us any less of friends, we simply got busy with our own respective lives.

Yet here we are, together again, and I had been ignoring her. In all of the confusion surrounding her appearance, through all of my inner turmoil, I had somehow forgotten that she was my friend. Probably my best friend. We had been roommates for years before she moved away, we had been through so much together. I missed her.

"Woah! Okay," Four says, awkwardly hugging me back. "That was unexpected."

"I am sorry," I say, "For not doing this earlier. I am sorry if I made it seem otherwise, but I am happy to see you again, Four."

"Uh... Same here?" She sounds a bit confused, but I suppose that's warranted.

"I am sorry for doubting you, however unintentional it was. I am a horrible friend."

"Hey, no you're not!" Four says, offended on my behalf. "We all have off days, okay? I'm not entirely sure what you have to doubt me about, though."

"It does not matter now."

After a few more moments cherishing the hug, I release her. She takes a step back, rubbing the back of her neck with one hand.

"First you nearly kill me, then you wouldn't so much as look at me, and now you're hugging me with no warning. Definitely an off day."

I let a little smile slip out. If it were from anyone else, I might have taken offense at her bluntness. But this is Four; that’s just the way she is. Plus, it's not like she's wrong.

Looking at her mask face still unsettles me, yes. It disturbs me that I can't read her expression, that her red eyes just stare— but I no longer hold whatever subconscious doubts made me question if it was truly Four behind the mask. I’m still concerned by her appearance, though now I can honestly say it’s only out of worry for her safety. I wondered about what would cause the Memverse to make Four look like that, knowing it probably wasn't anything good.

But I could look at her, and see Four. Not the Parallel Canon. That's what matters.

"Still..." Four continues, tilting her head upwards. "I'd take hugger Eight over killer Eight any day. You give really good hugs."

"Come on," I say through a laugh. "We are almost to the elevator. We must get you to Marina."

Now, I decide, is not the time to worry. I can worry once we know what's wrong. Until then, there's no harm in simply enjoying the company of a friend.

Chapter Text

"Hey!" Pearl says as the elevator door slides open. "Took you long— AHH! EIGHT, BEHIND YOU!"

Following Pearl's laser pointer, I look over my shoulder at Four. She glances up at the beam pointing at her forehead, then at the drone hovering within the elevator. Four's face is unable to show emotion, but her tilted head and lack of a witty comeback are enough to tell me how confused she is.

"Pearl, this is Four," I say, gesturing to each of them as I say their names.

"Pearl?!" Four exclaims, at the same time Pearl says, "Four? Really?"

"Yes," I answer.

"I trust your judgment, but doesn't she look a little—" Pearl starts. I quickly interrupt.

"She does, but it is her."

Pearl raises a drone eyebrow at me but doesn't press it.

"I thought I looked different, and here you turned into a whole robot! How cute," Four says, stepping forward to examine Pearl closer. "You're really Pearl?"

"The one and only," She answers. She would be puffing her chest if she had one in this form.

"That's so cool! Unless it isn't. It does seem a little inconvenient not to have hands."

Doing an unnecessary but rather impressive flip in the air, Pearl changes back to her inkling form, eliciting a delighted gasp from Four. She throws one hand into the air, two fingers raised in the peace sign I'd seen people do before.

"Hands, baby!" She says with a proud smirk.

"That's even cooler!" Four squeals, jumping up excitedly on her toes. "How do I do that?"

"It's kinda my thing," Pearl says, lowering her hand to place it on her hip. "Pretty sure I'm the only one who can do it."

"Oh, disappointing."

"Sorry to interrupt," I finally say, "But Pearl, we must get back to the Order Sector. I have to tell Marina about Four."

"Oh, right. That's probably important," Pearl says. She steps out of the way, making room for Four and me to board the elevator. With a press of a button, we're on our way back up to the surface. I let out a long breath, relieved to be away from the eerie storage floor. If I ever have to go down there alone again, it'll be too soon.

"So, what happened?" Pearl asks, leaning against the silver wall of the elevator. "I was waiting in here for almost two hours! You better have a good story."

"I do," I say.

I give Pearl a brief explanation of how I had found Four, attacked her, spared her, and then came to trust her again. I'm careful to leave out any parts that might clue Four into my worries, such as the fact that she’s identical in appearance to one of the Spire's boss jelletons. I'm still hoping that this will be an easy fix, and if so, there's no point in causing Four any unnecessary anxiety.

"Huh," Pearl says as I finish my retelling. She seems to be preparing to say something else, but she's interrupted by the elevator door opening, admitting us back into the Foyer at last. It’s a welcome change.

"Woahhh!" Four gasps, walking out into the center of the room. She spins around slowly, taking in the lights that shift and dance around the room. Pearl and I follow her out, amused by her sense of wonder. As her spin brings her around to face us, she slows to a stop.

"It's so pretty!" she says. "Why couldn't I have woken up here?"

I shrug. "The Foyer is pretty. Marina is probably in the Order Sector, though."

"Right, we need to talk to Marina," Four says, stamping a fist into her open palm. "I need to tell her how cool this place is."

"Yeah you do," Pearl says. "She won't believe me or Eight."

"And we need to find out why Four is here," I remind them.

"That too," Pearl agrees.

The three of us exit the Foyer through the narrow hallway separating the room from the Order Sector. I can feel Four buzzing with excitement as we walk, and the second I open the front door, she bolts out into the whitewashed Square. Coming out after Four, my well-trained eyes easily spot Marina and Acht peeking out from behind one of the pillars near the Spire's entrance.

Marina has her laptop hugged tightly to her chest, but she relaxes slightly when she sees me and Pearl. However, her look of distress quickly returns, and she jerks her head in Four's direction. The inkling was currently distracted by one of the Square's bleached coral growths and didn't seem to have noticed the two hiding octolings.

"It's okay, she's harmless," Pearl says with a reassuring smile, loud enough for both Marina and Four to hear. She had sure warmed up to Four fast. She likes the ones who are easily impressed, I’d found.

Four turns at the sound of Pearl's voice and begins walking back toward us, moving slowly to give herself time to absorb the strange environment.

"Is this the Square?" She asks, stopping in front of me. "Why does it look all white and creepy?"

"This is the Order Sector," I say. "This is just the way it looks, I think. You get used to it."

"Weeeird. It's okay for me to look around, right?"

Before I can answer, I see Marina and Acht finally step out from behind the pillar, though the former is still eyeing Four nervously. As the two make their way over, she tucks her laptop under her arm and smiles at us awkwardly.

"Welcome back," Marina says, obviously trying to sound natural, but failing miserably. "Um, who's this?"

"Marina!" Four exclaims. "Eight told me how you made this whole place! It's so cool! How'd you do all this?"

"Oh, well... I had a lot of help," She answers, giving me a confused look.

"Marina's being modest," Pearl says. "She did most of the real work."

Marina looks down, trying to hide her blush.

"I didn't know it was possible to make a virtual reality like this, it's insane!" Four says excitedly. "It's so lifelike! I thought this was all real until Eight told me otherwise."

"You said you wanted to look around, yes? You should meet Cipher," I say quickly, sparing Marina from having to come up with a reply. "It is one of the Memverse's AIs. It has a—"

"An AI?! There are AIs here too, like real intelligent ones?! I mean, I saw all the little blue guys wandering around but they didn't seem very talkative, are they AIs?!" Four says in a near shout. I'm beginning to worry she'll start screaming if she gets too much more excited.

"Yes, but Cipher is one of the few who will not ignore you. It has a shop over there," I say, pointing towards the window displaying Cipher's odd findings.

"A shop?! I want to go shop from an AI!"

"You may go do that, I can talk to Marina about our problem," I say, secretly grateful for the excuse to avoid having the coming discussion in front of Four. "Here, you may have some of my Prlz, buy what you like."

In the same way I summon a weapon, I summon a handful of the currency and drop it into Four's hands. She squeals excitedly, giving me a quick "Thank you!" before running off to Cipher's Siftings.

As soon as Four is out of earshot, Marina speaks. "Alright, can one of you please explain?"

"That was a Parallel Canon you were just talking to," Acht says, folding their arms.

"She is not a Parallel Canon," I sigh. "That was Four. She was the source of the signal from the storage floor."

"Four?!" Marina exclaims. "Like, Agent 4?"

"Yes."

Bewildered, Marina looks to Pearl, who shrugs. "Eight would know better than me. She's way too friendly for a Parallel Canon, that much I can say for sure."

"Four, huh?" Acht says, rubbing their chin. "That's the person you wanted in charge of Memverse security, right?"

"That's her," Marina says, nodding. "I don't know why or how she's here, though. I was considering putting her in charge of security, but I never had a chance to ask her. Not before the whole Order fiasco."

"She does not know why she is here either," I say. "I believe she may have been drawn in against her will."

"No, that doesn't make sense..." Marina replies. "We reconfigured her palette a while ago, so it should be impossible for her to enter the Memverse unwillingly."

"We must consider that we may have done something wrong in reconfiguring it."

Marina's eyes widen, and Pearl furrows her brow. Acht is the only one not visibly shocked by my statement, but I doubt they're unaffected.

"One moment, I can check…" Marina says. She gets to her knees on the ground and opens her laptop, immediately beginning to type and click away. Pearl, Acht, and I watch in silence as she bites her lip in focus, narrowing her eyes at the screen.

"There don't seem to be any outstanding issues with Four's palette, " She finally says without looking away from the laptop. "As far as I can tell, it's reconfigured just the same as the rest of the palettes."

"But Four's here anyways," Pearl says.

"Just because I can't find anything doesn't mean there's nothing wrong," Marina says. "It could be a relatively minor issue in the code that would be hard to spot from my laptop. I could better analyze it from the Control Room, so we'll probably need to arrange a trip up the Spire soon."

She looks up then, letting out a strained sigh.

"Or, in the worst-case scenario, I can't find a difference between Four's palette and the others because all of them share whatever flaw has allowed Four to get sucked in here. I think my other theory is more likely, but I don't want to ignore this possibility."

"Let's just hope it's not that," Acht says. Pearl and I nod.

"I also went ahead and checked the statuses of the Parallel Canons in the Spire, Marina continues. At my questioning look, she quickly adds, "I believe you that this is Four, but I don't think we should ignore what she looks like. I thought it might be possible that her consciousness replaced one of the Parallel Canons, though that wouldn't explain why she was on the storage floor. But none of the Parallel Canons are missing from the Spire, so Four for sure isn’t one of them."

"Do you know why she looks like that, then?" I ask.

"I wish. The Memverse is supposed to generate an avatar for every user based on their memories, so it should have caused Four to look like... Well, Four. The Parallel Canon appearance may be a pre-made avatar exclusive to Four. Maybe Order was planning to use the real Four as its Parallel Canon before it decided to use AI copies instead, but it left the code for Four's avatar in the files somewhere." She shrugs. "That's the best I've got. I'm sorry."

"Well, now we know she's one hundred percent not a Parallel Canon," Pearl says. "And... Is there anything else we know for sure?"

No one answers.

"It's a lot of speculation," Marina says at last, closing her laptop. "For now, we'll have to put the Memverse Restoration Project on hold. Our top priority should be to fix whatever bug has Four tied to the Memverse."

We all nod in agreement.

...So, I suppose this means it's time to break the news to Four.

Chapter Text

        Just as she's emerging from Cipher's Siftings, I find Four, arms piled high with newly bought decorations. I quickly sidestep out of her way as she nearly runs into me, blinded by her stack of boxes.

"Eight!" Four says upon noticing me. She carefully sets her things down on the pavement, steadying the tower with one hand before it has a chance to fall over. The pile of crates and other wares was nearly as tall as Four herself.

"Check out the haul," she continues, putting her hands on her hips. "All those boxes remind me of the ones on the storage floor, but smaller. They'll make cool souvenirs if I can find a way to bring them with me to real life."

"Yes, about that," I begin, but Four doesn't stop.

"And look at this," She says, picking up an item from the top of the pile. I frown at the round, red-eyed mask, identical to the one currently stuck to Four's face. She holds it beside her head so I can more easily make the comparison. "Weird, huh? Cipher wouldn't tell me where it found this, but I know it didn't steal it from me. Does the mask thing happen often?"

"Um, no. Not really," I say. "Four, I need to talk to you."

"You're talking to me now," She says, carefully returning the mask to the top of the pile. "What's up?"

"My long story. Do you still want to hear it?"

"Oh, yeah! I almost forgot about that."

"Then we may want to find a place to sit," I say, gesturing toward the benches outside the Spire.

"Aight."

I help Four carry her new belongings over to one of the benches, where the two of us take a seat. Pearl, Marina, and Acht had voted me to be the one to tell Four the bad news since I know her the best. Meanwhile, they would begin preparing a place for Four to stay during her (hopefully short) time in the Memverse. It was obvious who had the easier job.

I figure it would be best to provide some background before going into Four’s specific predicament. So, I explain everything. Why and how Marina created the Memverse, how Order had taken over, and how it had exploited certain security breaches to connect hundreds of people to the Memverse, including Four herself. I tell her of its plan to grayscale the world, of how it had fed off the unspoken wishes of the Memverse's engineers for a world free of change. For once, Four doesn't interrupt. I sense that she knows I'm leading up to something.

I tell her of my journey up the Spire of Order and the eventual defeat of Order. The reconfiguring of the palettes. Smollusk's change of heart. And finally, the steps we had been taking to mend the Memverse.

"Wow. Huh," Four says as I come to the end of my retelling. "That's insane. So I temporarily got my soul stolen by an evil artificial intelligence... I feel like I should remember that…"

"To those outside of the Memverse, I have heard it simply felt like they were more spacey than normal," I reply.

"I don't remember feeling very spacey, not for more than a few hours at a time. But that’s normal spaciness, I’m pretty sure."

"Maybe you experienced it differently," I say, shrugging. "I never felt the effects myself, but I am a special case."

"I dunno, something about this… There’s something…" Four looks up at the peachy sky, folding her arms. She had been bouncing her leg throughout most of my story, which I had written off as a simple release of energy, but now she's doing it with new, anxious vigor. "I don't know. Um..."

"What is it?" I ask, suddenly worried.

"How long did you say this has been going for?" Four asks, gesturing with one arm to nothing in particular.

"How long what has been going on for? The Memverse?"

"Yeah. From when you first came into the Memverse to now, how long has it been?"

"It has been about four months. Why?"

Four stays quiet for much longer than is normal for her.

"What season is it?" She asks at last.

"It is Sizzle Season," I answer slowly.

"Oh."

I watch her, waiting for her to say something, anything else. She doesn't. She stares intently at the sky, bouncing her leg like her life depends on it.

"Four...?" I say, tapping her shoulder. "Are you alright?"

"I don't know," Four says, her voice unnaturally flat. "I don't remember."

"Something is wrong. What is it."

"I don't remember."

"Four—"

"I don't remember. That's the problem, I don't remember," she interrupts. "My last memory is... I think I was texting someone, but I know it was during Chill Season. That's the last thing I can remember from before I woke up in that storage room however many hours ago."

I feel a chill run through me. That is not good. Could Order have burned some of her memories? It's a possibility, but one I'm not too eager to consider. If that's the case, we can’t do anything to get them back.

"Ah. Maybe the trauma of being forcefully pulled into the Memverse caused you to lose those memories," I say. "I am sure they will come back."

"Maybe," Four says, doing nothing to hide the doubt in her voice. "I didn't realize it would be so... Unsettling, having amnesia. I don't feel like I ever had those six months of memories. No 'blank space' or anything. It's like I time-traveled to the future."

I nod. If anyone understands what it's like to lose their memories, it's me.

"I guess I'm pretty lucky that I only lost four months when you lost your whole life back then," Four sighs. "Doesn't make it feel any less weird, though."

"I am sorry," I say. "I am sure we can find a way to help you get your memories back."

"I hope so. If it's the Memverse that made me lose my memories, maybe I can get them back if I leave?" She says, turning to face me again. "I dunno, the most I know about amnesia is from you and fiction."

"Oh, right..." Her whole memory loss situation had nearly made me forget about the original reason I needed to talk to Four. "About that... I am not sure you will be able to leave very soon."

"...Huh?"

"Remember how I told you that the palettes connected people to the Memverse until we reconfigured them?"

"Yes... But you said you reconfigured all of them already. I would think mine is included in all of them."

"We did. However, we think there might be an issue with your palette that would keep you tethered to the Memverse."

"Okay, can you reconfigure it again? Fix whatever that issue is?"

"Yes, and we will. However, we must go up to the Control Room on the top of the Spire of Order to do so. It is a long trip, and we will not have the time to make it today."

"Oh..." Four says, understanding. "So I'm going to have to stay here."

"Only until we can reconfigure your palette at the Control Room. You will have to stay here one or two nights at most," I say. "I am very sorry."

"Eh, I'll live. There are worse places to spend the night," She replies, but I'm sure she's only saying it to make me feel better.

"The others have been working to make a comfortable place for you to stay," I say. "Marina can make virtual food in the Memverse, but it has no nutritional value for your body in real life. I'm not sure if you will be able to eat here, though, with your face like that. Also, since your whole mind seems to be within the Memverse, your body is likely more than just spaced out. As such, you may be hungry and dehydrated when you leave the Memverse."

"Noted. And just to be clear, you, Marina, Pearl, and that other person can all leave the Memverse, right?"

"Yes, we can," I answer. "I can stay with you tonight if you need the company, but the quality of sleep within the Memverse is not the same as outside of it."

"Nah, it's okay. You gotta be at your best to get me out of here ASAP," Four says. "I was just wondering if you could check up on me in the real world to make sure I'm not, like, dying of starvation or anything."

"I can do that. When would you like me to?"

"As soon as you can. Tomorrow would be great."

"We may not be able to climb the Spire tomorrow if I do this."

"That's alright, I'd rather be stuck here one extra day than come back on the brink of death from lack of food and water."

"Fair enough."

"And one last thing, can I sleep in the Grizzco building while I'm here?"

"I am sure that is no problem, but... Why?"

Four snickers, which I now realize is a strange sound without the facial expression to accompany it.  "Cause it's funny, and screw Mr. Grizz."

"Okay..." I say, getting to my feet, and then giving Four a hand up.

We soon find Marina, Pearl, and Acht within the building that would be Ammo Knights in the real Inkopolis Square. The space had been repurposed as an office area for Marina to work while in the Memverse, after some things became too much for her to handle on her laptop alone. A large desk, an office chair, a computer with several monitors, and an unlimited supply of paper and writing utensils were enough for Marina to tackle as many problems as possible outside of the Control Room.

Currently, she appears to be at work creating a 3D model of a bed. Many other windows are open across the remaining monitors, including several indecipherable pages of code, an internet search for pictures of beds, and a recording from one of Off the Hook's concerts. Acht and Pearl stand on either side of Marina, watching her put together the virtual bed on the virtual screen. Pearl is the first to notice Four and me as we enter the building.

"Yo, there you are! Enjoyed your hour-long heart-to-heart?" She says.

"It was wonderful, thank you," Four answers, a teasing tone to her voice.

"I'm really sorry about this, Four," Marina says, pushing her chair away from the desk and turning to face us. "I promise we'll get you out as soon as we can, and this'll never happen again. I am so sorry. If there's absolutely anything you want while you're here, just say the word, I'll do what I can to make this up to you."

"It's no biggie," Four says, sounding genuine. "This world you made is shella cool, I don't mind staying here a couple days."

Marina nods, looking relieved. "Give me a minute to finish this bed, and then we can set up a place for you."

We spend the rest of the day doing just that. Using her newly built 3D model, Marina materializes a bed inside of the Memverse’s version of Grizzco. Worried that Four might be even slightly uncomfortable, she provides her with an unnecessary amount of blankets, plushies, and pillows. She gives Four a shelf to display the things she bought from Cipher, a replica of the same shelf she originally created for the shopkeeper. A table, a lamp, a chair, and then we finally manage to stop Marina from doing anything more. It was quite the setup for a room that would be lived in for a couple of days and then never used again.

I make sure to let the others know about Four's amnesia, but we all agree that getting Four out of the Memverse is still our top priority. Being trapped here is much more dangerous than not being able to remember the past four months. And anyway, if we're lucky, Four's memory will come back while we climb the Spire or after we reconfigure her palette. If not, we'll figure it out after she's free.

By the time we had gotten Four settled into her temporary living space, the sky was beginning to darken from peach to indigo. The Memverse didn't originally have a day and night cycle, but Marina had coded it in after too many instances of losing track of time and staying in the Memverse well past midnight. I guessed that, now, it would be around 8 PM in the real world. I needed to log off and get something to eat and drink. Normally, Marina kept track of the time within the Memverse and had us take routine breaks for food and water. Today, however, had not been a normal day.

"It's about time for us to go," Marina says, giving Four an apologetic smile.

"Aw, okay," Four says from her spot lying sprawled across the bed. "See ya."

"Night. Be back tomorrow," Pearl says. Acht nods, and soon, the three of them vanish in a burst of golden polygons, returning to the real world.

"Shouldn't you go, too?" Four asks a moment later, lifting her head to look at me.

"Yes," I sigh. "Since I will have to go to Splatsville, I probably will not see you until late tomorrow, if at all. I will let you know how your body is doing."

"Thanks," Four says, laying her head back down. "...Now, if you don't mind, I haven't slept at all since I got here."

"Oh, yes," I say, smiling. "I will be going now. Good night."

"It was nice to see you again, Eight. Even if you attacked me."

"You too. Without the attacking part."

When Four doesn't speak again, I exit the Memverse.

My vision goes black for a moment, and then all sensation returns. I remove my silver headset, the same bulky, helmet-like prototype I had used the first time I entered Memverse. I’m back on the couch in my Inkopolis apartment, my body stiff from sitting in the same position all day. I set the headset down beside me, stand, and stretch. It feels impossibly good.

Addressing the pangs of my stomach and painfully dry throat, I chug several cups of water as I begin scrounging whatever quickly edible foods I can find for dinner. In the end, I have a wonderfully balanced meal of instant ramen, dried seaweed, potato chips, a whole carrot, and two bananas.

I spend another hour or so doing chores around the apartment before finally allowing myself to head to bed. I don't go straight to sleep, but instead scroll through my phone for a little while, giving myself time to wind down. After answering a few work-related texts, I scroll down and tap Four's number.

The last messages were from two weeks ago, Four sharing a video of the Splatfest that had been going on in Splatsville at the time. Two weeks ago. Four wouldn't remember it now.

I press play, allowing the video to run while I write a message to her.

Eight - 10:12 PM

I know I'm going to visit tomorrow, but it will not really be you. We should meet up again in real life once you're back. Which, if you are reading this, you are. Text me back when you see this. Thanks.

I stare at the message for a while before pressing send. There was no way for Four to receive the text from inside the Memverse, but for whatever reason I felt the need to write it now.

Satisfied, I set my phone on my nightstand and lay down. I let out a long, slow breath, closing my eyes as I sink into the mattress. All of the day's events had left me exhausted, and I knew tomorrow wasn't going to be any easier. Slowly, I feel the fog of sleep beginning to overtake my mind, and I welcome it with—

Bzzztt.

My eyes snap open, and I glance over at the nightstand. My phone buzzes again as if mocking me. Sighing, I sit up and grab the device. I turn it on, intending to quickly shut off notifications and then go back to sleep. At least until I see the texts, the sources of the buzzing, hovering in the center of the screen. At least until I see who wrote them.

Four - 10:59 PM

This is one clam ominous message to read at 11 o clock at night. What are you going on about

Four - 11:02 PM

Normally I would think this is a joke but it's not really like you. I have a lot of questions, like are you actually visiting tomorrow, wdym it won’t really be me, wdym ‘in real life’ like I’m not in real life. you’re kinda freaking me out Eight you better tell me you got the wrong number or smth

Chapter Text

I stare at the phone, rereading the messages over and over. In part due to my half-asleep mind, I can't seem to fully comprehend the meaning of Four's texts. Her disregard for proper punctuation does nothing to make it easier.

Her messages are concerning, but I'm sure there's a reasonable explanation. Four is probably messing with me. Yes, that's it. Four does enjoy joking around, even if she's not usually bold enough to do so this late at night.

Upon coming to this conclusion, I hastily type a message back to her.

Eight - 11:06 PM
How are you texting me?

Last I'd checked, the Memverse didn't allow for communication with the real world. It wasn't a feature we had found ourselves needing. Maybe Marina had added it in for Four's sake? It seems like a lot of work to spare her from one night without texting, but then again, this is Marina. It's not too unlikely.

I wait, drumming my fingers on the edge of the phone in time with the three little dots that bounce across the bottom of the screen.

Four - 11:07 PM
With my phone? How do you normally text people Eight

I stare again at the new message, growing frustrated at Four. I'm not in the mood for her teasing this late at night, and she should know me well enough to know that.

Eight - 11:08 PM
Did Marina give you a phone? I am not joking

Four - 11:10 PM
Are you having a stroke? Is that what this is? Do I need to call an ambulance?

Eight  - 11:11 PM
I am not having a stroke. This is not funny Four. It is very late and I want to go to bed.

Four - 11:13 PM
Girl you're the one sending me complete nonsense texts, you can't blame me for questioning you.

Ever more irritated, I let out a slow breath through gritted teeth. I doubt I'll be able to get to sleep before I get this settled. Four doesn't understand the implications of her supposed confusion at my texts, but knowing that does little to ease my annoyance at her.

Eight - 11:15 PM
Four, I am not in the mood for pranks right now. Can you please tell me that you are joking so I can go to sleep?

Four - 11:17 PM
I'm not joking! I swear I'm being completely honest when I say I have absolutely no idea what in the world you're going on about. I might be crazy, but not crazy enough to try and prank you at 11 pm. I don't have a death wish.

Eight - 11:18 PM
You are lying.

Four - 11:19 PM
I'm not lying!!!! Now if you don't explain yourself I'm going to assume there is something seriously wrong with you and call 911!

I feel a chill creeping up my body. I sit upright, dropping the phone onto my bed and running my hands across my face. Even Four wouldn't take a joke this far, she's not cruel. I can tell she's being honest, but... This can't be right. It can't be.

I don't want to know the truth. I'm scared to. But I can't just ignore this.

I pick up the phone again.

Eight - 11:23 PM
I will explain if you answer some questions first.

Four - 11:24 PM
Fine

Eight - 11:25 PM
Where are you right now?

Four - 11:26 PM
My apartment in Splatsville

Eight - 11:27 PM
What did you do today?

Four - 11:29 PM
Not much, I got some groceries and worked a few shifts at Grizzco. How is this related?

Eight - 11:30 PM
When was the last time we saw each other?

Four - 11:32 PM
A little over 11 months, way too long if you ask me. Speaking of which, are you coming over tomorrow? Usually we coordinate these things a few weeks in advance but I'll be happy to clear my schedule if we need to meet up

I exhale a shaky breath, turning off my phone and tilting my head up to stare at the ceiling. I don't want to believe it, but now there's no denying the truth.

She's a fake.

The Four I had spent the entire day with, who I had rescued from the storage floor, who I had shared my feelings with, who I had trusted despite my instincts, a fake. Over and over I had told myself that she was the real Four, that she was not a Parallel Canon despite the way she looked. I had convinced the others of it, too. And it turns out the voices whispering in the back of my mind, the voices I had tried so hard to ignore, were right all along. She is a Parallel Canon.

At this, I'm overwhelmed by a rush of emotions, hitting me all at once with a force I can almost feel physically. Confusion. Fear. Disappointment. Betrayal. Anger.

Anger at her. How dare the Parallel Canon imitate Four. How dare she trick me into trusting her? How dare she pretend to be my friend, all for whatever plan I had now helped her in accomplishing.

But more than that, there was anger at myself for believing her lies. How had I been so easily duped? I claimed that Four was my best friend, yet I obviously didn't know her well enough to distinguish her from a digital copy. I should have ended that false Four when I had the chance. I should have taken more precautions, at the very least. She may have been a liar, but I'm the one responsible for believing her lies.

My phone vibrates again, tugging me out of my mind. I lift the phone in a trembling hand, every fiber of my being set on edge. As I suspected, it was from Four, a message of just one word.

Four - 11:37 PM
Eight?

Relying on autocorrect to fix the errors of my shaking fingers, I slowly write a reply. I'm as awake as I can be, but my mind is nowhere near feeling clear. The tiredness has only been replaced by the muddling effects of fury and panic.

Eight - 11:39 PM
I am sorry. I need to go.

Four - 11:40 PM
Woah woah woah, you promised me an explanation

Eight - 11:42 PM
I will come tomorrow by noon. Meet you outside of Grizzco. I will explain then. There is something I need to do now.

With that, I turn off the phone and set it face down on my nightstand. It vibrates as if in protest, but this time I ignore it. Some part of me knows that my feelings are clouding my judgment, but for once, I don't care. I hand over control of my body, moving with barely a thought, fuelled by the sheer force of my emotions. One moment I'm throwing off my covers, and in the next I'm in my dark living room, lifting the Memverse headset from the couch where I'd left it.

Time to do what I should have done the first time.

The Memverse is dark, the sky having turned a deep blue. It feels unnatural. I'd never before visited the Memverse during the night, at least not since Marina updated it to have one. I'm used to the bright whiteness of the day, but now everything seems gray and shadowed. Not a single AI roams the Square. I had often ignored the things, as they did me, but now I realize how desolate the Order Sector feels without their quiet presence.

At least the Order Sector is still here. Left alone here, who knows what the Parallel Canon could have done. What she could still do. If she accessed Marina's computer, she could destroy everything we worked so hard to build. Thankfully, a thorough search through Marina's office reveals no signs of anyone having set foot here since we left.

I slowly make my way towards the Grizzco building, grip tight on my Order Blaster. Though I'm most practiced with the Order Dualies, the power of a direct hit from a blaster will be far superior when it comes to quickly taking out a sleeping target. Assuming the Parallel Canon is really asleep.

If I'm unable to find the False Four in Grizzco or anywhere else within the Square, I may need to go for help. If I do find her... I'm hoping I can handle this on my own. I don't want the others to know of my mistake.

I move silently up the slope leading to the building and press my body against the front wall. Readying my blaster, I inch my way closer to the door, using one hand to carefully push it open. Thankfully, doors within the Memverse are remarkably quiet, Marina having found the creaking an unnecessary annoyance to have simply for the sake of realism. With the door now open, I lean ever-so-slightly around it, peering inside.

And there she is. Staring directly at me.

I reflexively duck back out of sight, my hearts pounding so hard I worry they're going to burst from my chest. I wait, but I don't hear her voice or a sound of movement. Cautiously, I look around the door again.

On the opposite end of the room, the false Four is lying on her side in the bed Marina created, staring toward the doorway. However, she doesn't react in even the slightest way when I lean into view.

I move to stand directly in the doorway, eyeing the Parallel Canon. Still, she doesn't move. I enter the room, keeping my eyes and blaster trained on her as I begin creeping around its perimeter. Strangely, she continues staring at the entrance even as I leave her line of sight. As I get closer to her bed, I can hear a slow, quiet noise emanating from her, like... Snoring? Or possibly just breathing, the robotic quality to it makes it difficult to tell. Either way, that, combined with the unresponsiveness, is enough to tell me that she's asleep. Asleep with her eyes open. It makes sense with her mask-like face, as I doubt she's able to close her eyes at all, but that doesn't change the fact that it's quite unsettling.

I continue until I'm right beside her bed, standing over her sleeping form. I stay there for a long while, silently waiting, unsure what for. The false Four remains sleeping, the sound of her strange breathing the only thing to break the silence. Finally, I raise my blaster and point it at her head. It's time I get this over with.

And yet... I find myself hesitating.

Though I try to resist it, I begin to recall the moments we had shared throughout the day, from when I had first encountered her to when I had left the Memverse. As I pick through every memory, I'm reminded of all of the reasons I trusted her in the first place.

When we had first met, and I had demanded that she prove she was the real Four, she told me of a memory that only Four would have. There was no other explanation for that other than that she shares Four's memories. That has to mean she remembers me. She remembers every moment Four and I spent together. She must know me as well as the real Four, which, I realize, is something she'd already proven today.

As we walked back to the elevator, she had questioned me about my odd behavior. She would have to know me as few did to tell that I wasn't acting normally. And why would she make me talk to her about it if she didn't care? Yes, it could have only been to keep up her act, but if that was all she wanted, she didn't have to go anywhere near that far to make me trust her.

She had been so awed by everything in the Memverse. She had been so excited to buy things from Cipher's shop. She had confided in me about her missing memories, and she had seemed genuinely distressed over them. She did everything she could to keep us from worrying about her. She had had hundreds of chances to attack or destroy, yet she never so much as tried. She had trusted me wholeheartedly. She had believed I was going to help her. She believed I was her friend.

And now I'm here to murder her.

As the rage fuelling my actions begins to dissipate, I'm left feeling confused and conflicted.

If I kill her now, I can end this whole mess. She's just a Parallel Canon, only a copy of Four. I'll still have the real one. If I let her live, my life is going to become complicated to no end, and the Memverse Restoration Project will have to be put off.

If I kill her now, I'm a monster. She might be an AI, but she's different from the Parallel Canons, that much I have to admit. She clearly possesses thoughts and feelings like a real person, even if she doesn't exist outside of the digital world. There is no way to justify killing her. If I let her live, I'll be able to sleep at night. But what will I do with her?

I look from the blaster in my shaking hand to Parallel Four at the end of it, unsure. There seems to be no good answer. No matter what I do, I’m going to have to face consequences that I’m wholly unprepared for. Let her live, or take her life? I can’t—

Everything comes to a screeching halt. Every train of thought freezes in place while every sense and deep-rooted instinct goes on high alert. A slight change in her breathing pattern, or a subtle tenseness to her body, I'm not sure what it is. But right then, I realize that Four has woken up.

She doesn't move, speak, or try to fight back, she simply lays there, pretending that she's still asleep. She stays perfectly still and quiet, even as I wait and wait and wait for her to act. I would have preferred if she jumped up all of a sudden and attacked me. I wish she would make my decision easier for me, give me a reason to call her my enemy. But she doesn't… She's not.

I lower the blaster. I open my mouth, but nothing comes out.

I can't do it.

I take a step back, then another. I want to say something, an apology, a demand, a plea, I don't know, but I don't seem to be able to form the words. So instead, I turn and run.

I feel her eyes on me as I go.

Chapter Text

        What have I done?

Despite trying desperately to focus instead on the rumble of the train around me, or the music playing from a speaker somewhere above, or something, anything else, all my thoughts keep turning back to last night’s events. No matter how hard I try, nothing provides a strong enough distraction.

I hadn't killed her. I hadn't fired a single shot. Yet the guilt and shame had kept me up all night, and now it seemed that they would follow me all the way to Splatsville. I had hoped that time would ease the emotions, but even now, countless hours later, they held just as strong as the moment I had fled the Memverse. If anything, the tightness in my chest had worsened now that I was on my way to meet the real Four.

I was going to kill her.

I hadn't been in my right mind. The stress of the previous day, coupled with exhaustion both mental and physical, had put me in a fragile emotional state. The shock of discovering that the Four in the Memverse was a fake had caused me to snap. I like to believe that I wouldn't have done what I did under different circumstances, though that in no way excuses it.

I had gone in fully intending to take her life. Yes, I hadn't in the end, but would I have done the same if she hadn't woken up? I hadn’t killed her, but I had still considered it. I had considered it very seriously. Am I any less of a monster for changing my mind, when I had the pride to believe that I was worthy of deciding her fate in the first place? Am I any less of a monster for sparing her simply because I had gotten scared?

I shake my head, trying to clear my mind. Only then do I realize that, while I had been absorbed in my thoughts, I had been staring at the jellyfish across from me. Not staring at them, not intentionally at least, but in their direction. Even if I hadn't meant to, the poor jellyfish is clearly uncomfortable.

I quickly look down, my face growing hot. The staring was a habit I had tried hard to break, to no avail. It seemed that every time I got too lost in thought to pay attention to what I was doing, I defaulted to staring at whatever was in front of me. My friends had spent enough time around me to ignore it for the most part, but it was always embarrassing when it happened in public.

I wonder what it looked like to her, last night.

I shake my head again. I thought I had distracted myself for a moment, but the darker thoughts continue to creep back up. I had tried breathing exercises, looking out the window, and scrolling through social media, but none of these anchors kept me from drifting away. I was beginning to feel restless.

Ding!

My head jerks up. The electronic sign on the end of the train now announced that we had arrived at Splatsville. Indeed, I could feel the train begin to slow as it neared the station. I get to my feet, relieved. Sitting still for so long had given me far too much time to think.

As I exit the train amidst a crowd of fellow passengers, I pull out my phone and text Four to let her know that I have arrived. Judging by the long string of messages she had sent after I had abandoned her last night, some written in all caps, she was not too happy with me. I couldn't blame her. I only hope she's cooled off a bit in the hours since then.

Once I make it out of the train station, Grizzco is a short walk away, part of the reason I had chosen it as a meeting place. I begin toward the building, trying to spot Four through the masses of people. Though Splatsville’s main street is much larger than Inkopolis Square, it always feels just as, if not more crowded. Especially up here, just outside of the lobby, where inklings and octolings who had just returned from a battle mingle with those still waiting for theirs to start.

Four finds me first. With all of the noise and Four’s own training as an agent, I only notice her sneaking over seconds before she's on me. She tackles me in a hug from behind before I have a chance to turn around.

"Eight!!!" Four exclaims, wrapping her arms around my neck and kicking her feet off the ground, momentarily throwing me off balance. I'm suddenly reminded of the previous day when I had hugged the fake Four in the storage room. This Four, the real Four, feels a lot warmer. A lot more alive. It's... comforting.

"Four!" I say, surprised by her ambush. I had expected her to be too upset with me to come greet me like this, but she acts as if nothing is wrong. Unpredictable as always.

"It's been so long since I saw you!" Four says, letting go of me so I can turn to face her. "I missed you so much! We need to visit each other more often."

She smiles at me, and I feel my worries melt away just a little bit. After spending time with the masked, discolored Parallel Four, it’s nice to see her in her normal dark skin and bright yellow hair, not to mention with a face capable of expression. I had missed that smile.

"We do," I say, smiling back at her. "I missed you too."

"You look awful, did you sleep at all?" She gives me the once over, then sighs. "Right, we have stuff to talk about, don’t we? We should probably go somewhere more private. Come on."

I allow her to take my hand, feeling a sense of disappointment that the moment was over. Leading me away from the busy central street, we weave our way through alleyways and less populated roads, past several storefronts and street vendors. Finally, Four comes to a stop in front of a small café, hidden away in a quiet corner of the city.

"Here we are," she says, opening the door for me. “The boba here is divine.”

The building is in no way large or fancy, but it is well taken care of. Though it seems like a nice spot, the only other customers are a pair of older inklings sitting at a corner table, deep in conversation. I get the feeling it’s the kind of café I would frequent if I lived closer. I enjoy the relaxed atmosphere.

"I know you're not much of a tea person, but they have a delicious boba latte," Four says, following me in.

"I will have that," I say.

"Sweet. I'll order, you get a table. Drinks are on me."

Before I can offer to pay for myself, Four is already running off to the counter. So, respecting Four's request, I take a seat at the table farthest from the other customers. The conversation we’re doomed to have is not one I would like any stranger to overhear.

"Our drinks are on the way," Four says, coming over as soon as soon she finishes ordering. She doesn’t sit yet, choosing instead to lean against the table.

"Thank you," I say. I bite my lip, hesitating, before I add, "...I do appreciate how nice you are being, but... I thought you would be more upset at me."

"Oh, I'm upset. But it's been almost a year since we hung out, and I didn't want to ruin this," She replies.

"Ah," I say, deflating. "Well... Thank you."

"No problem. How about I stop being nice once we get our boba?"

Unsure of whether or not she's joking, I take too long to come up with a response before Four has to run off again to pick up our drinks. She returns soon after, handing me a cup of boba coffee, and then taking her seat across from me. By then, however, the moment has passed.

She waits for me to take a sip before asking, "Is it good?"

“It is,” I reply, taking another drink. Though I had only begun drinking coffee as a way to wake myself up, I had soon grown to enjoy the taste. Four never seemed to understand this, but then again, I had never quite understood her love for tea.

"Great!” She says. “Guess that means it’s time for the less fun stuff. So, about last night. Care to explain what the shell you were talking about? Can I assume it has something to do with... This?" She gestures vaguely toward me, likely referring to my disheveled appearance.

"Yes..." I sigh. "It is... A lot. I am not sure where to start."

"We got all day," Four says, sipping her tea.

"...I guess I will start from the beginning, then. A few months ago, Marina made a virtual reality as part of her project to help sanitized octolings. It is called the Memverse," I explain. "It was taken over by a rogue AI known as Order, but I helped to defeat it. That is another story."

"That is not what I was expecting. Wait, so you've been doing all that, for months, and you didn't tell me?" Four says, sounding hurt.

"I am sorry. Marina does not want the public to know about it until it is finished."

"You could make it up to me by letting me check out this Memverse. It sounds awesome."

"I cannot do that, for more reasons than one. Part of it has to do with what happened last night. It was... There was…"

I struggle to find the words. I don't want to tell her, though I know I have to. I don't want her to know what happened. I don't want anyone to know. But it's too late for that.

"Yeah?" Four says expectantly.

"In… In the Memverse, there is an AI that is a copy of you. I did not—"

"Woah! Pause. There's a copy of me in this virtual reality?" She scrunches up her face. "I didn't know about this! That's cool, but shella creepy. Probably illegal in some way, too. Tell that to Marina."

"Marina did not make her, I think Order did. Order stole your data while it was in control," I say. "It used it to make several artificially intelligent enemies with your combat skills. We call them the Parallel Canons."

"There's more than one clone? Cod, I feel like you should have told me about this way earlier."

"I am sorry. I should have."

"And they're evil too?"

"Yes. Most of them, at least. They do not have your personality, only your skills. Except for one of them."

Four raises an eyebrow. “Okay…?”

"I found her yesterday. I do not know why or how she was there. She looks just like the other ones, but she acts... different. She acts just like you. She... She convinced me that she was you. She has your memories."

"...Huh," is all Four says after a long, awful period of silence.

I wrap my arms around myself, ashamed, scared of what Four must think of me. "I am sorry. I— I do not know how she tricked me. I should— I should have known— I should have known she was not you— I—"

"Woah, chill!" Four exclaims. "You’re overthinking this. If she had my memories and my personality, it makes sense that you'd think it was me. I mean, if I was in your shoes, my first thought wouldn't be that she's an AI imitating you— or me, or... whatever. You get my point."

"You do not understand," I say, shaking my head. "She looked just like the other Parallel Canons. That should have been enough to tell me that it was not you. I already knew that Order stole data from you, it would not be hard for it to have created an AI with your memories and personality. And she even told me that she was missing her memories from the past few months. Of course she would not have those memories, Order did not have your data from that time. I should have guessed. I should have at least considered it."

"Beat yourself up all you want, I'm still not gonna blame you for being tricked. Stop trying to get me to be mad at you."

"...I do not want you to be mad at me."

"Then quit acting like it! Geez." Four takes another sip of her boba tea before pushing it away and resting her chin on her hands. "So an AI tricked you into thinking it was me, which was not your fault. But what about last night?"

"The texts I sent last night were supposed to be for her," I say, looking down. "I only realized that she was not you when you did not understand my texts. When you answered my questions, it proved that she was a fake."

Four nods slowly, forming a silent ‘oh’ with her mouth. "You didn't sleep at all after that, did you? You know that’s not healthy."

"No. But I… I…"

I had tried to kill her.

I put my head in my hands, trying to control my breathing as I recall the night's events for the thousandth time.

"Hey, it's alright!" Four says, leaning across the table to rest a hand on my shoulder. "I already told you, I don't blame you for getting tricked. I don't think anyone would have acted much differently in your situation."

"No. No, it is not that. I... Four, I..."

I had tried to kill her.

The words come so effortlessly to my mind, but I can barely get them out of my mouth.

"What?" Four asks, concerned. "Look, whatever it is, you're obviously pretty tired, and I think that might be messing with—"

"I—I tried to kill her."

Hearing the words aloud, even when I’m the one who spoke them, is a shock. I instantly wish I could take them back, but it's too late. Now Four knows. I tried to kill her.

"...Who? The AI?"

"Yes. I tried—I tried to kill her while she was sleeping."

"You tried. Implying you didn't kill her?"

"No. I couldn't— I couldn't do it. It was wrong."

"She's an evil AI clone of me, is it really so wrong to kill her?"

I look up, feeling a pang in my chest. "She is not evil. I do not— I do not think she is evil. She is different. I do not know. She is smarter than the other ones. She is more... Self-aware. She is like a person. A real person. She is like you."

"That's... Hm. I'll unpack that later," Four says. "So what I'm getting from this is you tried to kill her in her sleep, but you ended up not. She's not evil and she's self-aware, so it's not right to kill her. But you didn't kill her."

"She— she woke up when I had a gun to her head. She knows what I was going to do," I say. "I got scared when she woke up, so I ran away. How can I— How do I talk to her again? If she trusted me before, she surely does not now. I feel so guilty, Four…"

"Yeesh, this is some mess you got yourself into." Four removes her hand from my shoulder and begins rubbing her chin instead. "I’m not going to say you’re wrong for feeling guilty, but knowing you, you’re feeling more like you did something utterly unforgivable and should be executed for your crimes. That kind of guilt isn’t going to help anyone.”

She gives me a pointed look. I nod slowly, avoiding her eyes.

“What you did was pretty bad, sure, but the damage isn’t irreversible,” she continues. “If the AI is exactly like me like you said, I'd be pretty confused, scared, and probably a bit angry if I woke up to you holding a gun to my head. I wouldn't immediately decide to stop trusting you, though. She'll question you next chance she gets, but until then she probably won’t change her mind about you, assuming she considers you her as close a friend as I do."

"But what do I tell her?"

"I guess that depends. Does she know she's an AI?"

That gives me pause.

"I... Do not know," I say, only now considering the possibility that she doesn't. Now that I'm thinking about it, it would make a lot of sense… but…

"Hm. Sorry, but if that’s the case, I have absolutely no idea. Not unless you want to go out and tell her that she's not the real Four."

"I do not think I could do that."

"Didn't think so..." Four sighs. "Just make sure to apologize. Answer her questions as best you can. I dunno if that'd make up for your assassination attempt, but that's the best I got."

"What do I do with her if she does not know she is an AI?" I ask. "I promised to help free her from the Memverse, but now I do not know if that is possible. What do I do, Four?"

"I wish I could tell you, I do. I'm sorry I'm not much help, but this is the first time I've had to deal with a self-aware, artificially intelligent clone of myself living in some virtual reality I'm not allowed to visit."

I return my head to my hands, groaning. I can’t do this. There is no easy solution here, no solution at all. Maybe I should have just ended this when—

No, No, No. 

I did the right thing by sparing her, I know it. Even if it opens up a Pandora’s box of problems that I have no idea how to fix.

"Look, we can take this one step at a time," Four says, patting my head until I lift my eyes again to meet hers. "Go back and apologize to her. Try to confirm that she's not evil and find out if she knows whether or not she's an AI. We can make a more solid plan from there. I'll help you out as best I can, just shoot me a text if you ever need anything, alright?"

I nod, wringing my hands. "Thank you, but you do not need to be involved."

"This is my clone we're talking about, I think I need to be involved. Plus, it's not like I have anything more interesting going on. Haven't had any serious NSS missions for a while, this'll give me something else to do."

"If you insist," I say, secretly appreciative.

"I forgive you, by the way. For last night's freak out. You had a valid reason if there ever was one."

"Thank you."

She smiles again, getting to her feet. She grabs her unfinished drink with one hand and offers the other to me. "Now I'm taking you over to my place, whether you like it or not. You need rest."

I sigh, but I take her hand anyway. I know she’s right.

Chapter Text

        I spent the rest of that day in Splatsville with Four. We stayed at her apartment for several hours, Four forcing me into such tedious inactivity that at one point I found myself waking up from a nap. Despite all my complaints, I was grateful.

When she finally deemed me rested enough or simply deemed herself too hungry to keep waiting, Four brought me to a local restaurant for dinner. The building itself wasn't the nicest, but the food was incredible. Four always did have a knack for finding the most obscure little eateries.

The trip would have been amazing if it weren't for the reasons I had come here in the first place. I tried my best to enjoy my time with Four, I really did, but I couldn't stop thinking. The knowledge that this was merely the calm before the storm put a damper on my mood.

It was over far too soon. Sometime after dinner, as the sun was just beginning to set, Four walked me back to the train station. I had to leave now if I wanted to arrive at Inkopolis before dark. Yet I was reluctant to go, standing outside of the entryway with Four at my side. I wished I could stay the night, maybe stay with Four another day after that, stay forever if it meant putting off the inevitable, but I knew I couldn't. I had told the other Four that I would return tomorrow. I hoped to at least keep that one simple promise, no matter how much anxiety the thought of returning to the Memverse gave me.

So, after saying goodbye and assuring Four that I would keep in touch, I left her for the train back home. The ride was certainly not without its intrusive thoughts, especially considering what was to come, but I felt much more grounded after speaking with the real Four. I had a plan now. A vague one, yes, but it was enough to give me the little bit of confidence I needed. After arriving at my apartment, I even managed to get a few hours of sleep.

And now, late into the morning, I stand again in my living room with the Memverse headset in my hands. I’ve been there for a while now, on the verge of choking from the tightness in my chest. I slept, I ate, I have all of Four's reassurances and I know what I must do, and yet I'm nearing another panic as I prepare to enter the Memverse.

I take a deep breath. I have to do this. I have to. I know that the longer I put this off, the harder it will become. Without giving myself another second to overthink it, I put on the headset.

The Memverse is just as it should be. For whatever reason, this surprises me as I emerge into the digital world. The Order Sector is bright and serene, nothing like the shadowy, gray emptiness from the night of my last visit. It's so... Normal. The blue and pink residents wander the Square as if nothing is wrong.

Yet there she is, just outside the Spire of Order. The problem herself. The False Four. She's speaking with Pearl and Marina, her back to me. None of them have noticed me yet.

With Pearl and Marina...

At that moment, another wave of panic hits me. I wrap my arms around myself, suddenly feeling sick and dizzy and wholly unprepared for this. What if she told Pearl and Marina? I had been so preoccupied with how I would deal with Parallel Four that I hadn't considered, let alone planned for that possibility. What would they think? I'll have to tell them. I'll have no other choice. It was hard enough telling Four about what had happened that night, but it has to be impossible to go through that a second time. Not with them. Not without cracking.

If Four is my best friend, Pearl and Marina are family. I know they'll side with me, or at the very least they won’t punish me. But... They can't know. They can't know what I did.

They had been with me since the Metro. They had done more for me than anyone should ever be allowed to do. They had seen me at my worst and had chosen to help me. If it weren't for Marina and Pearl, I wouldn't be alive right now, let alone in a decent mental state. What I had done two nights ago was such a regression, years of recovery rendered void in an instant. Since then, I feel like I've only gotten worse. They will be so very disappointed in me. I can't stand that. It would hurt like a knife in the chest on a good day, but now...

I feel my throat constricting, my hands shaking with the beginnings of another panic attack. But before I can spiral again into the dark places of my mind, a voice draws my attention away.

"Yo, it's Eight! Didn't see you come in!"

I look up to see Pearl smiling and waving at me. At her shout of greeting, Marina and Parallel Four turn to face me as well. I can't tell what Four is thinking, but Marina at least seems happy to see me.

They don't know.

Relief sweeps away the panic, leaving me trembling with residual agitation. Neither Pearl nor Marina are the best at disguising their emotions, so I'm sure I would be able to tell if they were aware of my attempted assassination of Parallel Four. I have no idea why Four chose not to tell them. I wouldn't have blamed her, it's what I deserve, but I'm grateful nonetheless. Of course, that gratitude comes with twice the amount of guilt, for now, I owe her even more.

I force a smile and move to close the distance between us, eyeing Parallel Four as I walk over. It's difficult to tell without a face to read, but she doesn't seem hostile. She even gives me a little wave. I decide that I don't trust her friendliness.

"Welcome back!" Marina says.

"Hello," I say, inwardly cringing at how awkward I sound.

Pearl grins, playfully punching my arm when I stop next to her. “Enjoy your day off?” she asks.

“Um, yes. I suppose.”

I glance toward Parallel Four again. She's staring at me, but it's not like she can do much else with eyes like that. If she's upset, her body language gives no indication.

"So!" She says, making me jump.

In the time between that first word and the next, my hearts lurch. Is she going to call me out right now, in front of Pearl and Marina? Is that why she kept from telling them earlier? Would she really—

"How's my body?" Four finishes.

I blink, giving a slight shake of my head.

"Your body..." Oh, right. "Your body is doing well."

I'd almost forgotten the conversation we had had on that first day. Four, even Pearl and Marina, are under the impression that I had gone to Splatsville yesterday to make sure Four's real body was safe. Now I know that this Four has no such body. Does she know?

"That's a relief," Marina sighs. "You made sure she has enough food and water?"

"Yes, she does." I hope it's not too obvious that I'm making things up. “Your body is healthy.”

"Sweet! That means we're all set to go up the Spire!" Pearl says. "If we start now, we'll be able to clear it by the end of the day, yeah?"

Oh. Carp.

I inhale sharply. "Wait. We... We should not do that yet."

"Huh? Why?" Pearl asks. Marina nods, giving me a questioning look.

"I cannot... Because..." I speak slowly, struggling to think of a believable excuse. Parallel Four comes to my rescue.

"I have something I have to talk to Eight about first," she says, grabbing my wrist in an unsettlingly cold grip. Too tight a grip, almost enough to hurt.

There it is.

"Oh, okay!" Marina says, smiling, though there's still some confusion in her expression. "Do you need us to go, or..."

"No, it's fine. We'll just go to my place. You two can keep doing whatever."

Marina nods, clearly wondering what we so urgently need to talk about. Pearl seems a bit annoyed, but she waves a hand as if to dismiss us. I force another smile. I have to remind myself yet again that this is part of the plan.

With that, the Parallel Canon pulls me away from the others and on toward the Grizzco building. I don't struggle, despite the pit of dread steadily growing in my stomach. I know this has to happen if I want to earn back this Four's trust. That doesn't mean it'll be fun.

As soon as the door closes behind us, Four releases my arm. She storms away from me, kicks a chair on the other end of the room, picks it up, practically throws it across the floor before stomping after it, spinning it toward me, and sitting with a huff. I remain standing and staring at her in silence for a long while, shocked by that display of anger. She had acted so calmly in front of Pearl and Marina.

"Well?" Parallel Four says, folding her arms. "You gonna sit or are you just gonna keep standing there looking at me like I shot your mother? What, are you surprised?"

I don't answer for another long period.

"...I know what this is about," I say. "I—"

"You know clam well what this is about," Four snaps, stomping a foot. "You scared the life out of me two nights ago. You had a gun to my head! What the shell were you thinking? What was that?!"

"I am sorry," I say, feeling a lump form in my throat. "I was not in my right mind."

"You clearly weren't if you thought you could hold a gun to my head in the middle of the night and expect 'sorry' to make up for it."

I stare at the floor, unsure of what else to say. I can't tell her the reasons I had for doing that, but then what do I tell her? There is no good excuse for holding a friend at gunpoint, not my true reason and not any lie I can come up with.

"Look, I really don't care that much," Four says after a pause, her voice much less harsh. "No real harm was done. Physically, I mean, though I might be scarred for life. Plus, this is a virtual reality. I'm sure I could've respawned or something, right?"

I nod slowly. As an AI, I doubt she can respawn the same way users can, but she might not know that. I'm becoming ever more convinced that she doesn't.

"I just want to know why," She continues. "Why did you do it? Is it the same reason you attacked me in the storage room? Why have you been acting so weird around me since I got stuck here?"

For another long while, I don't respond.

"It is because... Because of how you look," I finally say. It's partially the truth, and I don't think too much harm can come from telling her. It'll be better, at least, than telling her nothing at all.

"Hm… I guess that's fair," Parallel Four says. "This isn’t my best look, that’s for sure. But I don't see how it would motivate you to try to kill me. Twice."

"The reason I attacked you before is because, when you are like this, you look like one of the jelletons. I thought you were one of them."

"Sure, ok, that explains the first time. But by your second attempt on my life, you knew it was me."

"I was having doubts," I say, choosing each word carefully. "I thought... I thought you could be an AI who stole Four's personality. When Order was in control, as I told you, it took data from many people. It could have created a... Copy."

"By that logic, literally anyone in here could be a copy," Parallel Four says, sounding so confident in herself.

"I suppose. But that, along with your appearance, made me think that you were... Not you. As I said, I was not in my right mind. I was very tired and my emotions were fragile. I acted without thinking. I am very sorry for what I did."

"I’m me, and I always will be,” she says. “But I'll forgive you if you promise to never pull something like that again. I'm gonna have nightmares for years."

"I promise."

"Then that's that," She says, standing up. "You're forgiven. Thanks for explaining yourself. It's a pretty stupid reason to nearly kill me, but I've done plenty of stupid things past midnight, so I get it. I've never attempted murder of course, but I won’t say I’ve never considered it."

I nod. After a moment of hesitation, I speak again, my voice quieter this time.

"...Thank you for not telling anyone else.”

"I knew you had some sort of reason for what you did. I figured I'd hear you out before I decided whether or not to tattle on you."

"So... Are you going to tell them?" I ask, worried.

"Nah," She replies. "I don't think it'd help anyone. We can keep this between the two of us. ...Unless I need some blackmail."

"Thank you, I think?"

"No problem." She has a smile in her synthetic voice, brushing past me on her way to the door. I soon turn to follow her.

I feel better now that that's over with. The anticipation of that conversation had been the source of much anxiety. Though I don't feel relaxed by any definition of the word, I now have a bit more room to breathe. I feel bad for lying to Parallel Four, yes, but the truth would've hurt her much more. What matters is that she trusts me. She's forgiven me.

But now that we had talked again, I'm sure; Parallel Four doesn't know that she's an AI. I can't think of any reason why one who is aware of the nature of her existence would talk or act the way Parallel Four does. She's either a very good mimic with motives I don't understand, or she genuinely believes that she is the real Four. A part of me still hopes for the former, but I feel that hope getting slimmer with every interaction.

I can imagine how difficult it will be for her to find out that her life has been a lie. In a way, her problem is similar to the one I had struggled with for the past several years. While I had little memory of who I was until quite recently, Parallel Four has the memories of someone she is not. Both of us, in different ways, don't understand who we are. And, for that, I feel a certain kinship with the Parallel Canon.

She will have to learn eventually, but I can find a way to break it to her as gently as possible. I understand what it feels like to lose your identity. Yet it will be much harder for Parallel Four than it ever was for me, discovering she’s both an AI and a clone. So, until I come up with a more solid plan, I have only one goal: To keep Parallel Four from finding out what she is. And to do that, I must keep her from going up the Spire of Order at all costs.

Chapter Text

        "Aaaand they're back! Did you have fun?" Pearl asks, angling herself toward Parallel Four and me as we return to the benches. She and Marina had sat down since we left them, but they hadn't moved otherwise.

"It was a blast," Four says. Jokingly, I think. "You missed out. Were you guys sitting here the whole time?"

"Pearl and I had some things we needed to talk about, too. It was as good a time as any," Marina says with a shrug. But… there’s a note to her voice that doesn't sound right. She's nervous, but she's trying to hide it.

Pearl nods, moving back into a more proper position. "You missed out."

Now that Marina's more obvious body language has alerted me, I can tell that something is off about Pearl as well. She’s better at disguising it, but I can now see the signs that her relaxed demeanor is forced. I narrow my eyes at them.

"Oh well. We never can win, can we?” Parallel Four says, sitting cross-legged on the ground in front of Marina and Pearl. “Anyway, I don't think I have anything else I need to do. Are we ready to get on with the Spire?"

I start. I wasn't expecting that question so soon, and had yet to think of an excuse for why we couldn't go. I start scrambling for anything that could be somewhat believable, hoping that the others don't immediately answer “yes.”

"Um, actually..." Marina says in a slow, embarrassed way, to my surprise. "I'm sorry, but it doesn't look like we're going to be able to do that today..."

Relieved, I exhale a silent thanks to the octoling. That gives me another much-needed free day to work on my strategy. Four, however, freezes in place, her normal fidgeting and shifting stopped so abruptly that for a moment I wonder if the Memverse is lagging.

"We were barely in there for a half hour," she says. "We can't have passed our window of time."

"You're right," Marina says, biting her lip. "But I need time to run some diagnostics, and—"

"You did that yesterday," Parallel Four interrupts. "And the day before that, or so you've told me."

"Yes, you're right about that too. But during yesterday's diagnostics, I found a few little issues that needed fixing. I need to make sure that I've handled them completely, and that these patches haven't caused any additional bugs..."

A stiff, wide-eyed look has come over Marina's face, which I had originally attributed to her dislike of breaking bad news to people. Now I'm not so sure. Something about the way she's explaining, trying to placate Four, the way Pearl is nodding seriously as if she understands… Why are they acting so strangely?

“You didn’t mention anything about this earlier today,” Four accuses, before pointing a finger at Pearl. “She was the one who asked if we were ready to go up earlier. You didn’t bring it up then.”

“Hey, Marina only told me about this a few minutes before you came back. Don’t blame it on me,” Pearl says, raising her hands as if to prove she’s innocent. “But it’s pretty bad stuff, according to Marina.”

“Yeah. Yeah, it’s bad,” Marina says. She’s beginning to lose her cool. This shouldn’t be overwhelming her as much as it is. “I didn’t bring it up earlier because I didn’t realize how bad it was. While Pearl and I were waiting for you, I did a quick check on my laptop, and there were… there were a lot of alerts. A lot of errors.”

“They were covering the whole screen,” Pearl adds.

“I think the patch I made earlier may have caused them to pop up over time. Either way, I don’t think it’s safe to take on the Spire right now. Give me time to fix it. We can try again tomorrow, okay?”

"And what if that patch makes more bugs? Will you have to postpone this again? What about the day after that?" Four asks. The pain coming through her voice, even with the robotic filter, gives me a sharp pang of guilt.

Marina seems just as guilt-ridden, if not more so. " We won’t know until later. I'm really sorry. I'm trying my best, but I need to make sure it's safe and all…"

"Memverse glitches are pretty nasty stuff," Pearl says. “Trust me, you’re much better off waiting. There are plenty of other things we can do to pass the time in here.”

I look at the inkling, furrowing my brow. Every sentence out of their mouths has made me more and more skeptical, but this last claim is a flat-out lie. Unless she's counting the whole Order fiasco, we had never seen the Memverse glitch seriously. Marina had been thorough with her programming. She had once explained to us at length all of the measures she had taken to prevent any major bugs, and though I didn't understand half of that speech, she sounded quite confident in her methods.

I turn to Marina. She meets my gaze, swallowing hard and trying for a nervous smile. I follow as her eyes trail back to Parallel Four. That's when it clicks.

They're stalling.

Just like me, they’re trying to keep Parallel Four out of the Spire. Since when…?

"I have bills to pay," Four finally says, quieter. "You're lucky I work at Grizzco, else I'd be losing my job by now. Either way, I'm not making money stuck in here. I've been trying not to think about it, but I can’t ignore that anymore. I’m going to go broke at this rate. I can't live in here."

"I know, I know. I'm trying," Marina repeats, her fake smile falling away.

"I'll pay whatever you need if it comes to that," Pearl says, putting a comforting hand on Marina's leg. "'Rina's doing her best, maybe lay off her a bit."

"Well, sorry for being upset about being trapped here for who knows how long," Parallel Four says.  "I agreed to stay here before 'cause I was under the impression that I'd be leaving today. I guess I can wait until tomorrow, but... Hurry up."

She stands then, looking at each of us in turn. Waiting for a response. For a long while, nobody gives her one. I’m the one to break the silence.

"We will get you out," I say. The words bring with them another rush of guilt. I hate lying to her, but I hate the alternative more.

"I hope so," she says. With that, she stalks away in the direction of the Memverse's Grizzco. No one says a word, no one tries to stop her.

Pearl, Marina, and I remain at the benches outside the Spire of Order. I stare at the closed door of Four's residence, the one she had disappeared into several minutes ago now. She had sounded so distressed, more so than I had heard from her in years. More than I heard from the real Four, that is. I had only known this one for two days.

Four was always so relaxed. It took a lot for her to become upset or angry, yet I had seen both emotions on full display just today. The events of the past couple of days must be weighing on her more than she's letting on.

"Eight..." Marina says, startling me out of my thoughts. I tear my eyes away from the closed door to see that she and Pearl have their gazes fixed on me now, both of them wearing expressions of concern.

"Yes?" I ask.

"We can't get Four... We can't get her out. You know that, right?"

"Yes. I know."

A heavy silence settles over us. So they did find out about Parallel Four. I should’ve guessed it would happen. It would be more of a relief if the horrible mixture of shame and foreboding brewing within me wasn't so overpowering. Now they can help me, and I don't have to worry about telling them how I found out. Now they too have to suffer from the knowledge of what we must do to her.

It’s several more minutes before I speak again. "How did you find out about her?"

"When I ran diagnostics yesterday," Marina answers, "It came up with an alert saying there was a jelleton outside of the Spire. I looked into it, and, well... Yeah."

She twirls a tentacle around her finger as she speaks, staring off into nothing, lost in her own thoughts. Every movement of her body and tone in her voice screams how stressed she is. She’s not trying to hide it anymore.

"Marina just told me, like, thirty minutes ago," Pearl says. "It's... Wow. What do we do about this."

She laughs, running her free hand over her hair, her other still on Marina. Even she is more tense than normal, her laugh a little shakier. Thirty minutes has already taken a toll on her. She's supposed to be the strong one.

"I do not know what to do," I say, taking a seat next to Marina, who's only half paying attention. "I want to break it to her as gently as possible, but I do not know how to do that."

"I don't think it's possible," Marina says. "There's no way to shatter her entire perception of reality gently. There's no nice way to tell her that she's going to have to stay here forever, or that she's an artificial intelligence. I can’t believe she doesn’t know..."

"We can find a way," Pearl says. "There has to be a way. Smolly and Cipher are happy living here, I'm sure she can be too."

"Smolly and Cipher know that they're AIs. They see the Memverse as their home," Marina says. "It's not the same for this Parallel Canon."

"Parallel Four," I correct her. "It... It does not feel right to call her a Parallel Canon."

"Sorry. You're right."

Another silence.

"I visited Four yesterday," I say. "The real Four. I told her what was going on. I am sorry if you did not want that, but I think that she will be able to help."

"No, that was a good idea," Marina quickly assures me. "She probably knows Parallel Four better than we do."

"I will talk to her tonight. She may have thought of something by now."

"So… until we have a plan, do we just keep stalling?" Pearl asks. She doesn't sound too pleased with that idea.

"We kinda have to," Marina says. "She's guaranteed to find out what she is if she makes it to the top of the Spire. If we want to reveal it to her in a controlled way, we can't let her go up."

"She's not gonna be happy with us..." Pearl mutters.

"That means we need to come up with a plan as quickly as possible." Marina lifts her head, letting out a slow breath. She then forces a mask of determination onto her face, pounding a fist into her open palm. "We can do this. Eight, you talk to Real Four tonight and see if she has any ideas. Pearl, you try to keep Parallel Four distracted and happy until we come up with something. I'll try to work some fake bugs into the Spire so we have an excuse to keep from going up. I'll also be in charge of making sure Acht knows about this. They're going to be busy until later tomorrow, but maybe they can help us make a better plan. Does that sound good for now?"

"Great," Pearl says. I nod in agreement.

As it turns out, that simple plan is much more difficult than it sounded at the time.

Parallel Four emerged from the Grizzco building after an hour or so, claiming to have come to terms with the delay. Though she was clearly trying hard to pretend everything was fine, I didn't miss the allusions to the Spire of Order made throughout the day, the subtle hints to her true feelings toward being held back. Pearl and Marina don't notice the signs. Even so, the fact that I do is concerning. Four is normally much better at hiding her feelings, especially when trying as hard as Parallel Four seems to be.

Marina spends the day pretending to run diagnostics and patch bugs, all while planting new, controlled ones to support our lies. When, later that evening, she informs Four that the amount of errors coming up likely means we won't be going up the Spire tomorrow, I worry that she’s going to storm off again. But she manages to control herself this time, brushing it off with a light reminder to fix these issues as quickly as possible. I, however, see the way she clenches her fists, the stiffness in her movements, and the slight edge to her supposedly calm voice. She's getting frustrated.

It's a relief to finally leave the Memverse for the night. After a long day spent entertaining Parallel Four, trying to keep her thoughts away from the Spire, I'm exhausted. My movements feel sluggish and my mind fragile. In reality, I had spent the entire day sitting on my couch with the headset on, but my body doesn’t understand that. So I crawl my way through making dinner, heading to bed immediately after the last bite. Of course, there’s still one more thing to do. I must talk to Four.

Over text, I explain how the conversation regarding my attempted murder of Parallel Four went. I tell her of Pearl and Marina's new involvement and the plan we formed to stall until we could come up with an idea. After a minute of hesitation, I even admit to her my own feelings toward the situation. I'm scared for Parallel Four, I'm scared that there is no good ending for this situation, I'm scared that she is going to hate me for lying to her with my every breath.

Four takes a long time to respond, whether it's because of the sheer length of my messages or simply because she doesn't have her phone on her when I send them. I relax when I finally see the dots appear on the bottom of the screen.

Four - 10:31 PM

Nice that your talk with Digital Me went well, and that's great about Pearl and Marina. We need all the help we can get. I can’t promise that this’ll turn out wonderfully, but that doesn’t mean we won’t try, right? That’s all we can do sometimes. Have you confirmed if this 'Parallel Four' knows she's an AI?

Eight - 10:32 PM

I am very sure that she does not.

Four - 10:34 PM

That's so creepy tbh. Knowing that there's an AI out there who's 100% convinced that she's you

Eight - 10:36 PM

What do we do, Four?

Four - 10:37 PM

Don't panic, first of all. That won't help even a tiny bit. Cmon, I know that’s what you’re doing right now

Eight - 10:39 PM

I am trying.

Four - 10:40 PM

That’s a start. I don't have a miracle answer for you (yet), but I promise I'll try to think of something. Your stalling plan sounds good for now. Just a fair warning, knowing me, the other Four is going to get sick of the simulation pretty quickly. Especially if she's already getting frustrated like you said.

Eight - 10:42 PM

I know. I will keep that in mind.

Four - 10:43 PM

Great, I'll text you if I come up with anything. Let me know if anything happens. Also, make sure you sleep tonight. Sleep is important. Take care of yourself.

Eight - 10:44 PM

I will.

Four - 10:45 PM

You better. Nighty night!!

After that, I shut down my phone for the night. I don't know what I was expecting. Of course Four wouldn't have an immediate answer, this is as much a new situation for her as it is for me. Yet a sense of disappointment and dread hangs over me as I lie down, heavier than my covers, not nearly as warm. I can’t help wondering whether a happy ending is possible in this mess I’ve gotten myself into.

I lie there for hours, staring into the dark, the noise of my mind keeping me awake. I give up on sleep after a while. It seems I've lied to the real Four, too.

Chapter Text

        I remember a time, several years ago, when Four and I were only just getting to know each other. I was relatively new to the surface, trying hard to understand its ways. To understand its people. Four, to me, was the picture I had conjured for the inklings during my time in the underground: strange and carefree, fun-loving, but entirely unruly. She said whatever she wanted whenever she wanted to. She took risks for the fun of it. She questioned authority. The two of us were black and white, sun and moon, complete and utter opposites. Yet somehow she took a liking to me, the quiet, secretive, rule-following octoling.

At one point, I remember asking her why she was the way she was. Where did she find that boundless confidence? How did she go through life without worry?

"The simple answer is, I hate being controlled," she had said with a laugh. "I don't want to let anyone or anything dictate what I do with my life. I have my worries, believe it or not. But, unlike someone I know, I don't let them control me. I prefer to be free."

Four and I had very different definitions of freedom, as became apparent that day.

My entire life before Inkopolis had been spent under the control of others. First in the Octarian Army and then in the depths of Kamabo Co., I was forced to comply or risk everything. Freedom, then, was the ability to make my own choices, to go where I pleased, to live without the constant fear of punishment.

To Four, however, freedom was much more than that. Where I saw large-scale oppressors, she saw her boss, societal norms, mental blocks, and other such things I had always considered inconveniences at most. This view was something I couldn't understand. I didn't agree with her then, and I don't now; but knowing how much value Four places in her freedom makes it that much harder to see her, or this copy of her, trapped here in the Memverse.

All of this goes through my mind as I load into the Memverse to see Parallel Four pacing in the center of the quiet Square. She waves in greeting when she spots me, and I return the gesture with an insincere smile. She looks terribly out of place here. Where everything is soft and pale, her metallic skin and glaring red eyes are a sharp contrast.

I arrived before Pearl and Marina, so I hadn't been expecting to find Four out here already. She must have been wandering the Square alone for some time. I picture the sea bunny I had once seen in a pet store, staring out at me from its too-small cage, no one to keep it company but the inkfish passing by.

"Morning," Four says once I meet her in the middle of the Square.

"Good morning," I reply. "What have you been doing?"

"Nothing really," she says. Her tone of voice suggests that it was not nothing, but I don't press it. "Thank goodness you're here, I'm bored out of my mind. I have no clue where Cipher is and I need someone to talk to."

"Cipher is probably out searching for more things to sell. I noticed that you have bought more from it since your first visit, so it must need to restock."

"That makes sense. Where does it get all that stuff, anyway?"

"I do not know," I say. I had asked before, but all of its answers had been hopelessly vague. Ever since I had discovered the storage floor, however, I had begun to suspect that many of Cipher's wares could be traced back to those eerie corridors. I have no idea how it's able to go there without elevator access, let alone admin permission, but I doubt I'll ever get that particular secret out of it.

"Cipher isn't what I’d imagined an AI would be like," Parallel Four says, looking in the direction of its empty shop. "It has so much personality, I can hardly believe it's not real. I like to visit it when no one else is here to hang out with me."

"Yes. I am glad you have made friends with it."

Something about what she'd said doesn't sit right with me. I assume at first that it's the remarks she made about AI, completely oblivious to her own artificial nature. But there was something else. I can’t put my finger on it…

"Yeah, it seems to like me pretty well. It's always calling me 'Cousin.' Does it do that to everyone?"

"No," I say, surprised out of my musings. Cipher always referred to me as 'Octoling.' I had long ago given up reminding it of my name. If it calls Four 'Cousin,' then... Oh.

"Huh, it must really like me. That's pretty cute," Four says.

"Yes. It must," I reply, praying that my unease doesn't leak into my voice.

At that moment, I see a golden flash out of the corner of my eye. Another user has entered the Memverse. Four must have seen it too, for she turns to face the newcomer.

"Hi!" Marina greets us. She glances toward the space beside her just before Pearl appears in another burst of gold, stretching her arms above her head. Upon seeing Four and I, she flashes a tired grin.

"Yo! Off the Hook is in the house."

"Morning," Four says, the same greeting she had given me.

"Mornin'," Pearl says, before tilting her head toward me in an almost accusatory way. "You're up early."

"I was having trouble sleeping," I say.

"Huh. Weren't we all?"

Marina nods solemnly. "Hopefully I can get all this fixed today. This has been stressful for everybody."

"That's for sure," Parallel Four mutters.

I look from her to Marina, saying nothing. I don’t want to get my hopes up, but I have a sneaking suspicion that Marina is implying something with her choice of words. Has she come up with an idea for how to deal with Parallel Four? The small smile she gives me when our eyes meet all but confirms it.

"I'll get right to work," she says, turning her smile to Four. "Hang in there, alright?"

"Yep." Four is abnormally curt, enough to make my worries resurface. When she had spoken to me so much like her normal self, I had hoped that she had gotten over yesterday's irritation. It seems that bringing up her current predicament brought all her feelings back up with it.

"If I get all those bugs patched, I'll be sure to let you know," Marina says. "We'll have you out of here within a few days if all goes well."

It's obvious that Four is less than satisfied with that assurance, but she nods anyway. "Thanks."

Marina returns the nod before running off to her computer room. I watch her go, wishing I could ask about her plan, but I know I can't. Not in front of Parallel Four. I'll have to trust that she knows what she's doing.

"Welp, we got some time to kill," Pearl says. "What do we do?"

"Literally anything, please. I'm so bored," Four says with a strained laugh, appearing slightly more relaxed now that Marina's gone.

"Then to the Foyer we go," Pearl says, pointing a finger toward the Spire of Order. "Unless you have any better ideas."

Nobody speaks in the pause that follows, and so it is decided.

Parallel Four doesn't seem thrilled as she follows us to the Foyer. Though the training area is the most interesting place outside of the main body of the Spire, it gets a bit old after the hours and hours I'd been told that Four had spent there while I was in Splatsville. Without using the elevator, there simply isn't anywhere better to go.

Over the past months, I too had spent a good deal of time training here with Pearl. I know this place so well that I'm certain I could navigate it with my eyes closed. Even so, it feels wholly different now that Four is joining us. Marina and Acht had occasionally sat in on my training sessions, true, but this is the first time I have another non-drone user practicing on the stage with me. This new experience becomes double the challenge when I realize that she has jelleton ink.

It makes sense that she would, being a Parallel Canon and all. Nevertheless, it comes as a shock when her weapon’s fire covers the floor in muddy, black liquid. Seeing that color makes my tentacles curl, my grip subconsciously tightening on my Order Dualies. Four is almost as surprised when my ink comes out a pale gray.

When she finds herself unable to match my ink color, or even change hers at all, we resolve to simply stay cautious and avoid shooting too close to each other. I can respawn if a stray shot somehow takes me out, but knowing that Four might not make it much harder to disguise my anxiety while I train alongside her. But despite my worries, both of us are skilled enough to avoid making these accidents.

We try to take turns with Pearl while we train, but that plan doesn't work out very well. Four gets far too much enjoyment out of Pearl's ability to glide. She spends her time flying from one end of the stage to the other, performing acrobatics in the air that I doubt would ever be helpful in combat. In the end, she took hours with Pearl whereas I had minutes. But as long as she's entertained, I'm perfectly happy. And she does seem to be having fun. Watching her glide through the Foyer's floating lights, whooping with joy, I can't resist a smile.

We spend hours half-practicing, and half-playing within the Foyer before Marina finally interrupts. She's been standing in the doorway for several minutes before I finally notice her and wave to get the others' attention. Pearl and Four, who had been in the process of gliding across the stage for the thousandth time, turn in midair to move in our direction instead.

"Please tell me you have good news," Parallel Four says, dropping to the ground in front of Marina. Pearl changes back into her inkling form beside her.

After a moment’s hesitation, Marina slowly shakes her head, to a whispered curse from Four.

"We're not going to be able to go up the Spire today. Probably not tomorrow, either," Marina says. "I think I might know how to fix all these bugs, but I'm not sure how long it'll take."

"That tells me nothing," Four says. "Is gonna be, like, a week? A month?"

She's growing snappish again. The harshness of her words makes it hard to imagine that she had been having so much fun just minutes before. I can see it causing Pearl to feel defensive, and Marina nervous.

"I doubt it'll be a month. Maybe a week? I don't know yet," Marina says.

"Fine. Fine! I can't do anything about it anyway," Four says, each word sharp as a knife. She folds her arms, pacing back and forth with agitation while Marina looks away.

"Also, I... I need to talk to Eight for a minute," she says, quieter.

"Okay," Four says. "I don't care."

I give her what I hope is an encouraging smile. Despite her worrying behavior, I can tell she's trying, expending effort to keep herself from arguing further. I can tell it's hard. She meets my eyes but doesn't do or say anything more. I wonder if she would smile back if she was able.

"You still have me," Pearl says, giving Four a pat on the back. "We can have fun without them."

"Mhm."

Marina and I watch the two return to the training area before we turn together and exit the Spire. Whether or not Four was holding back, I can tell that Marina was hurt by her reaction. She has an air of guilt and anxiety about her that reminds me too much of what I've been feeling for the past few days. Both lost in our thoughts, neither of us says a word until the door to Marina’s office closes behind us.

"I am sorry about her," I say first.

"It's okay. She has a right to be upset," Marina replies as she fetches an extra chair from the corner of the room. "I just wish I could give her some good news for once. She must hate me."

"I do not think she hates you," I say. "Four is not like that."

Marina sets down the chair in front of me, before taking a seat in the one already beside her desk. She gives me a smile that tells me she doesn't quite believe my reassurances.

"I hope so. You know her a lot better than I do."

"What is it that you wanted to talk to me about?" I ask, sitting in the open chair.

"I think I have an idea about what to do with Parallel Four."

I perk up. "I had guessed. Why did you not call for both me and Pearl, then?"

"I don't want to leave Parallel Four alone," Marina explains. "Plus, she might get suspicious if I asked to talk to both of you privately. I'll tell Pearl later if you think my idea sounds good."

"That is smart," I say. "What is your idea?"

Marina turns her chair to face her computer. She clicks around until the primary monitor displays a document with a set of bullet points, apparently outlining the steps of her plan. She uses her mouse to highlight the text before turning back to me.

"I'm calling it 'Project Homeworld.' For now, at least," She says. “I’m not sure about the name yet. I know it’s not all that important, but… Anyways.”

She opens a new window on another monitor, this one displaying a picture of the Order Sector that she had drawn herself. In the center of the picture is Parallel Four, a frowny face drawn over her mask.

"Right now, Parallel Four is unhappy in the Memverse because she remembers living in the real world. She sees the real world as her home, even though she's never personally been there."

I nod, still eyeing her drawing. It's rather disturbing to see a Parallel Canon with a mouth. I wonder if this is what she has been doing for the past few hours.

"If we want her to be happy, she needs to appreciate the Memverse," Marina continues. "We need to make it feel more like home to her."

She clicks a key, and the drawing changes to show a much more colorful and lavishly decorated Order Sector. I make out what I’m sure is an unnecessary number of arcade machines, musical instruments, books, and board games in the background. Parallel Four's frown has changed into a smile.

"We find out what kinds of things Four likes and fill the Memverse with them. In the meantime, we keep stalling until we're pretty sure that Four is happy with the place. Then we can take her up the Spire, where she'll learn that she's an AI, but hopefully at that point she’ll be comfortable with the idea of living here."

The drawing changes to Pearl, Marina, Smollusk, Parallel Four, and me in what I assume is supposed to be the control room. Parallel Four's mouth is a surprised 'O,' her hands on her face in shock. There are also a few roses drawn around Pearl, but I doubt those are relevant.

"Will Smollusk be okay with us making these changes for Four?" I ask.

"I'm going to try to contact it through my computer to ask," Marina says. "Under normal circumstances, we'd have to take a trip to the control room for that, but going up there is out of the question this time around. I'll have to come up with a way to get in touch with it from down here. I've been wanting to design an easier way to contact Smollusk for a while now, but I never got around to it with all of the other projects we had going on. This is the perfect opportunity!"

"That is a good idea," I say before she can launch into a detailed explanation of exactly how she plans to do it.

"You think so?"

"Yes. I do think that Four will still be upset to find out that she is an AI, but this plan might make it easier on her. I do not think there is any way to reveal it to her without upsetting her at all."

"Yeah..." Marina says, her face falling. "It's a difficult situation."

"My only concern is that Four will lose patience," I say. "If we take too long to help her feel at home, she may try to take on the Spire on her own. whether or not there are bugs."

"That wouldn't be good, but it's not too hard a fix. I can lock up the elevator so she won't be able to sneak in. I'll call it a precaution due to the Spire having so many bugs."

"That would work," I say, a faint smile coming over my face.

I'm beginning to believe that this might be a real solution. If everything goes well, this plan could succeed. Parallel Four could feel at home here. She could learn that she’s an AI with as little pain as possible. Maybe, just maybe, this isn't all going to go down in flames.

Chapter Text

        Four - 10:15 PM
I dunno Eight, that doesn't sound like the best way to go.

Lying in bed, I stare at the text as if I can make those words change by sheer force of will. I had meticulously typed out Marina's plan for Four, complete with the illustrations, and waited eagerly for her response for several minutes. And this is what I get?

Pearl had agreed to this plan earlier today, after Marina managed to catch her alone. Even Acht had agreed once they joined us later in the afternoon. I had been getting my hopes up ever since then, excited to receive the 'go ahead' that I was sure Four would give me. This is not the reply I wanted.

I take my time to write my next message, careful to keep my emotions out of it as best I can.

Eight - 10:18 PM
Do you have a better idea?

Four - 10:19 PM
Not yet, but I can tell you that the chances of that plan working are pretty low.

Before I finish typing my reply, she sends another message.

Sure, I guess it's better than nothing, but it's not the best. Giving Parallel Me a bunch of stuff isn't gonna make her happier. Maybe a bit less bored.

Eight - 10:22 PM
Like you said, it is better than nothing.

Four - 10:23 PM
We should come up with a better plan.

Eight - 10:24 PM
Then what is your plan?

I watch Four type, pause, and then continue typing for a concerningly long time. Was that too much? I consider apologizing, but in my frustration, I opt not to. Instead, I simply wait for her next message.

Four - 10:32 PM
I already told you I don't have one yet. Sorry I can't be your 24/7 idea-generating machine, I have a job and my own responsibilities to take care of. I'm trying my best here!

Eight - 10:34 PM
You were the one who demanded I let you help.

Four - 10:35 PM
And I am helping, so do NOT give me that! What do you think I'm doing critiquing your Project Homeworld?? Is that not helpful enough for you???

Eight - 10:37 PM
I am sorry. But we have to have a plan, we cannot keep stalling. This is the best we can do.

Four -10:38 PM
Fine, don't listen to me. I'm telling you this plan isn't going to work. Maybe if it were an AI clone of someone else, but not me. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I'm pretty sure I'm the leading expert on Four here. I know how this is going to go.

Eight - 10:40 PM
I understand what you are saying, but what I am saying is that we have no better choice at the moment. We can change the plan if you come up with a better idea, but a slight chance of success is better than none at all.

I pause, but Four doesn't text me back. After waiting for a long while, I add:

I will warn Marina that you do not think her plan will work. We will probably still go ahead with it.

Another pause.

Good night, Four. Sleep well.

I stare at the screen for I don’t know how long. I feel a sting in my hearts with every minute that passes without a response from Four. I know I hurt her feelings, and I feel horrible about it, but at the same time, I don't think I'm in the wrong. This is the best we can do. Even if we end up changing the plan, I don't see what harm can come from giving Parallel Four some fun things to ease her boredom. I'm sure Real Four will understand in time.

I shut off my phone, bathing my room in near-tangible darkness. I try not to let myself feel too anxious about Four's warning as I burrow into my covers. I know she wasn't lying, I know she's going to be right about this, but I also know that I need sleep badly. And at last, the world allows me this one pleasure.

The following morning, I'm determined to stay true to my word. I ask to speak privately with Marina first thing upon entering the Memverse. She seems distressed by Four's warning, but she agrees that we should continue with our current plan until we can form a better one. Marina later informs me that Pearl and Acht think the same. Maybe, I decide, Four wouldn't be so opposed to this plan if she were as directly involved as we are. If only she too were forced to watch helplessly as Parallel Four grows more restless every day. Or maybe I’m just desperate.

So, with everyone but Four in agreement, we officially kick off Project Homeworld. It’s easy at first. Marina has me write a list of all the things I know Four likes, and Pearl is tasked with getting more specific ideas from Parallel Four herself. Meanwhile, Marina and Acht work on coding them in.

While we aren't able to add ink sports into the Memverse, and we decide not to add Four's favorite foods and drinks on account of her lack of a mouth, we're able to create many other things for her to enjoy. Over the next several days, we give her these amusements bit by bit.

I report our progress to Real Four every night as always. And every night, without fail, she reminds me that Project Homeworld isn't going to work. That we should stop, hold out for a better idea. She goes so far as to say that this has the potential to end worse than if we simply do nothing. Like an idiot, I brush off her warnings. She has yet to come up with a replacement plan, after all, and the rest of us haven’t had the time to do it ourselves.

During the first couple of days, we start off by giving smaller things to Parallel Four; crafts, books, decorations for her room, and board games I spend all day playing with her. She gives us her thanks, but I can tell she isn't satisfied. So we go bigger.

We keep from doing anything too drastic, since Marina hasn't yet found a way to contact Smollusk for its permission. We do, however, get dangerously close to the line. Marina creates several arcade machines for Parallel Four, a virtual fish tank, a Tableturf game table, and even a rock climbing wall within the Grizzco building. Parallel Four still isn't happy.

I had expected her to become less irritable, at the very least, now that she no longer has to spend every day in boredom. My prediction fails yet again. To my horror, I watch her emotional state become worse and worse with every day, with every gift. The more time passes, the less time she spends around Marina, Pearl, and Acht. By the third day of Project Homeworld, she's keeping to her room for hours on end. She sticks to me like a remora when she does come out. I’ve become the only person she still trusts. By the fifth day, she's given up on pretending to be fine. She'll barely say more than a few words to the others anymore. Even to me, she doesn't talk as much as she normally would.

I'm overthinking this, I tell myself over and over each day. Of course she's spending more time in her room, she has a climbing wall in there! We gave her anything she could want. She has to be happy.

But I know that's not how it is. I hate it, I try to make excuses against it, but I know. What Parallel Four really wants is something that we can't give her. No amount of toys, no amount of games, no amount of petty distractions can substitute for her freedom.

On the sixth day of Project Homeworld, we have one final, desperate gift to give before we abandon the plan completely. I'm the one chosen to fetch Parallel Four for the reveal. I know it's not going to work, even as I walk the path to Grizzco's door. Nothing else has worked. But the others want to try it, so we might as well.

I knock twice, then take a step back. Wait. It's a few minutes before Four opens the door.

"Oh, hi," She says, her voice as emotionless as her masked face.

"Hello. How are you doing?" I ask. My smile is a weak one. It wouldn't take Four to tell that I'm faking it. You would think that I would have gotten better at lying by now, with all of the practicing I’ve been doing.

"Fine," she says.

"That is good. Can you come with me for a little bit?"

"...Yeah. Sure."

I get the feeling that she knows what this is about. I can tell she doesn't want to go, but I'm thankful that she doesn't argue. She steps outside and together we walk toward Marina's office, where the others are waiting.

All three of them turn at the sound of our arrival. Acht is the only one who's honest with their blank expression. Pearl and Marina smile at the sight of Parallel Four, but at least they do a better job with it than I had.

"Hi, Four! We have something new for you, check it out," Marina says, gesturing to the central monitor of her computer. She moves out of the way so Four and I can take a closer look.

It's a 3D model of the Grizzco building's interior, with the addition of a new room. It's larger than the others, with raised platforms, grates, and jelleton dummies arranged within the space. A mini Foyer, just for Four.

"I haven't added it in just yet, but it'll start building itself with the click of a button," Marina says. "What do you think?"

Everyone is watching Four expectantly. She stares at the screen for minutes that feel like hours, not saying a word. Pearl starts to bounce her leg. I feel my muscles tense as time passes by, sensing that something isn't right.

Finally, Parallel Four utters a single, dark word: "No."

Marina's smile, which she had been holding for a painfully long time now, falters. "...No?"

"No," Parallel Four repeats. "No. Just—just stop. I don't want it."

"Oh, alright," Marina says, blinking. "That's fine, we don't have to add it. I'm sorry."

She's disappointed, but there's a hint of surprise in her voice as well. Maybe Four didn't like some of our gifts, but she hadn’t outright turned them down until now. Something is wrong. More so than before.

Parallel Four shakes her head as she steps away from the screen. Marina moves to take her place, quickly closing out the window that had displayed the new room.

"You know, I had another idea," she says, this time doing a much poorer job of hiding her despair. "Eight told me about how much fun you've had gliding with Pearl. If you want, I can make a new—"

"NO!" Four interrupts in a near shout, startling everyone. "Stop! I don't want it! I don't want any of this!"

"I'm—I'm sorry," Marina stutters. Pearl steps forward, putting a protective arm in front of her.

"How about you stop?" She says. "We're only trying to help. No need to start yelling."

"You're not!" Four retorts, taking a step away from them, closer to me. "You're not helping! These stupid, stupid gifts aren't helping! You can lie to me all you want, but I'm not an idiot! You think I don't see what you're doing?!"

I feel a pit of cold terror opening up in my stomach. I have never seen Four this angry. She's trembling, her fists clenched so tightly that I'll be surprised if they don't bruise. At Four's words, both Pearl's and Marina's expressions melt into wide-eyed fear. Even Acht seems taken aback.

"What—What are we doing?" Marina says. "We just— I was— we wanted to give you something to do while—while I fix the Spire. I'm sorry."

"Then I would rather you spend more time fixing the Spire and less time trying to keep me complacent with a bunch of useless junk I don't need!" Four says. "I'm going to leave here soon anyway, aren't I? So what's the point?!"

There's a pause, a silence so dreadful that I feel like I'm going to buckle under the weight of it. Parallel Four tips her head back to stare at the ceiling as if she can hardly bear to look at us.

"I knew it," she finally says, her voice quieter but no less cutting. "I want you to tell me something. How long am I going to stay here?"

"I don't—" Marina starts, but Four cuts her off.

"Don't say that you don't know. That's a lie."

Marina looks away, pursing her lips. She doesn't answer. No one does.

Four lets out a shuddering breath. "Why do you want to keep me here so badly?"

Again, no one answers.

"Please." Her voice catches. "Tell me what's going on."

No answer.

"I want to—I want to go home. Let me go."

"...We'll get you home," Marina finally says, hesitant. "We just need more ti—"

Four stomps her foot, hard, startling Marina into silence.

"I’m sick of this!" She says. "I gave you plenty of time! I was supposed to go home a week ago!"

Parallel Four sounds like she's near furious tears, though I doubt she’s truly able to cry in this form. Pearl is seconds away from flat-out attacking her out of her anger. Acht is trying their hardest to disappear into the shadows, escape all of this. Marina looks like she's about to cry herself. I'm not even sure what I feel.

"I'm... I'm sorry," Marina says, barely above a whisper.

"Like shell you are!" Four snaps back, before whirling around and beginning to storm away. She bumps into me when I don't move out of her path. Our eyes meet for a moment, and she inhales sharply like she's preparing to say something, but then thinks better of it. Looking away, she pushes past me and out of the building.

After Four is gone, a heavy silence hangs over the room. Marina hides her face in her hands. Pearl starts rubbing her back, seeming unsure of how else to comfort her. She keeps glaring at the door as if Parallel Four can feel her fury from the other side.

I'm numb. All I can think about is how horribly this has gone wrong. Everything is falling apart around me, and it's my fault. I should have listened to Four. I should've listened. I should've listened...

"What do we do now?" Acht says, their voice too loud in the stillness.

"I don't know..." Marina chokes out. "I don't know..."

"We could tell her the truth," Pearl says. "She's already upset, and I don't think it's gonna get much better."

"No," I say. "That will make it so much worse. We should at least wait until she has calmed down."

"This is all my fault," Marina whimpers. "Project Homeworld made everything worse. She’ll never be happy. I should've seen it coming... I—I ruined everything…"

"No you did not, don't get that in your head," Pearl says. "This is all of our faults, but we can find a way to fix it, yeah?"

She waits for an answer, looking at each of us in turn. No one responds. But inwardly, I know we're all saying the same thing:

I'm not sure that we can.

Chapter Text

        It takes some time to recover from Parallel Four's angry outburst. It’s more than my usual struggle to shove my emotions down, calming the overwhelming dread and guilt to a simmer in the back of my mind. It will all have to resurface eventually, but that will be for a future Eight to deal with. Right now, all I want is to touch the bliss of unfeeling.

Marina was the most affected. That much is obvious to all of us. While Pearl finally gets her to stop crying with much time and effort, we are unable to convince her that this isn't entirely her fault. At the very least, after it’s clear she won’t be easily consoled, we manage to talk her into leaving the Memverse early. We all agree that she needs to take some time for herself.

But while Marina and I are guilt-ridden to no end, Pearl is too furious to care how Parallel Four feels. Or that's just the mask she's put up. As far as Pearl is concerned, no one makes it out alive after screaming at Marina like that, after hurting her like that, after making her cry, no matter how upset they were at the time. It takes a lot of pressure from Acht and me to convince her that getting back at Four is not the best way to handle this. She knows it's not what Marina would want. Even then, I'm sure to keep a close eye on her.

As for Acht, I doubt they're as unconcerned as they pretend to be. Acht is much better at internalizing their emotions than I am, so even something as small as that edge in their voice is enough to tell me they're struggling as much as the rest of us. I'm only glad that I don't have to try to calm them too.

By the time we've sent Marina away and the rest of us have settled down, the beginnings of the evening are warming the virtual sky. We finally emerge from the office, prepared to face Parallel Four, but she's nowhere to be seen. We all know where she must be, but none of us are brave—or, in Pearl’s case, controlled—enough to knock on the door of the Grizzco building. So we wait. We sit on the benches outside of the Spire where we had sat so many times before, watching the residents of the Order Sector wander about. No one is in the mood for conversation. Parallel Four doesn’t show her face.

"I don't think she's coming," Pearl says after what must have been hours. "Try again tomorrow?"

"I suppose..." I reply.

My reluctance must not have been well-hidden, for Acht replies, "Sitting here doing nothing isn't going to help her, Eight."

"I... I do not want to leave her after all that has happened. It does not feel right."

"I hate to say it, but I'm pretty sure that the last thing P-Four wants is for us to stick around," Pearl says with a humorless laugh. "Come on. If we can't do nothin' else, we can at least give her some space."

Acht nods. "Mhm. She probably needs time to cool off."

I look toward Grizzco, my shoulder slumping. The door hasn't opened.

"I suppose," I say again.

"Look, I'm tired and starving, and I need to check up on 'Rina. I'm not staying," Pearl says. "I don't care if you do, but don't neglect yourself just cause you feel bad. You're not a horrible person for taking care of yourself."

"She's right," Acht says.

I hesitate a moment before answering. "Okay, I will go. Just give me a little bit longer."

"If you're still here tomorrow morning, I'll have Marina kick you from the Memverse," Pearl warns.

"I will not be."

Pearl glares at me a minute longer, then lets out a sharp huff and hops off the bench. "You'd better. See ya."

In a burst of gold, she's gone. It's only Acht and me now.

They stay with me a few minutes longer, the two of us sitting in silence. Now they're standing to leave as well. Acht takes a few steps forward, pauses, and looks over their shoulder at me. I can't see their eyes through their red shades, yet I stare back at them with what I hope is a resolute expression.

"You aren't lying?" They ask.

"No."

"You won't stay long?"

"I will not stay long," I promise.

"I'll hold you to it," They say, turning away. "You can't help her if you don't take care of yourself first."

"I understand."

Acht stands there for a few seconds longer. Then, just like Pearl, they're gone. I'm alone.

For a while, I simply continue waiting, staring up at the slowly darkening sky. The residents of the Order Sector trickle away little by little, off to wherever it is they go during the Memverse nights. The sun will be setting in the real world. I should go soon.

I stand and make my way to Parallel Four's residence. Every step I take is an active choice as I fight against my anxiety. Even as I reach the door, it takes me an embarrassingly long while before I muster up the courage to knock. I step back and wait. I get no response. My hearts sink, though I hadn’t expected anything more.

"Four," I say, loud enough that she should hear me from the other side of the door. "Everyone else has gone. I am leaving now, too. I waited as long as I could. I am sorry. I hope you can forgive us... Forgive me. Eventually. Good night."

This time, I don't wait for a reply that I know won't come. I take in a shuddering breath, turn my back on the building, and walk away. My friends know me too well. If it wasn't for my promise to Acht and Pearl, I would stay here all night waiting for Four.

Right at the edge of the slope descending from Grizzco, I stop in my tracks. Something has alerted me. My mind moves quicker than my body, leaving me no time to react before I feel an icy cold hand around my wrist, a presence behind me. Startled, I whirl to face Parallel Four.

"Wait," she says. Her grip is too tight. I don't think I have a choice.

I stare, my heartbeats drumming loudly in my chest from the shock of her appearance. Silently, I curse those awful, soundless doors for turning against me. I don't have time to think of something to tell her.

"Sorry. I didn't mean to scare you," Parallel Four says, loosening her grip ever-so-slightly. There is little remorse in her synthetic voice. She has tried to smother it, but I still feel the heat of anger burning deep within her. It scares me.

"No, no, it is okay," I say, forcing my body to relax. "I am sorry. I was not expecting you to come back."

"I wonder why."

I wince. "I am sorry. About earlier. We did not... Well... I did not know that the gifts would offend you."

"I wasn't offended…" Four says. She almost adds something else, but catches herself.

"Oh. I am sorry nonetheless," I say.

There's a pause. Parallel Four draws in a long breath before speaking again, her lowered voice carrying a weight in it.

"...Eight. Can I trust you? Be honest."

I am so taken aback by that question that, for a moment, I struggle to form an answer. I hadn’t thought this conversation was going too badly, all things considered, but now I can see it taking a turn.

"Yes. Yes, of—of course," I manage to say.

"Can I really?"

"Yes. I promise."

"Then tell me what is going on. Please. I feel like everyone is working against me."

"Four, I… I…"

She releases my wrist, stepping back. "I want to trust you, but it's hard when I know you're hiding things from me. I'm scared, Eight. I... I need you."

That hits me like a punch to the gut. I feel the beginnings of tears picking the corners of my eyes, my breath catching in my throat. The catch in her voice, the pain of her words, she's being completely genuine. But even then, even now, I can't do it. I want to, I want to so badly. I open my mouth to tell her the truth. Nothing comes out.

"You're not going to tell me anything," Four says. It's a statement, not a question.

"I... I am sorry," is all I can make myself say.

"Are you really? Are you sorry?"

"I am. I am sorry. I am so sorry, I cannot—I cannot tell you."

"Why not?!"

"I—I cannot. I am sorry. I am sorry."

"Okay. Fine. Fine, maybe you really can't tell me for whatever stupid reason,” she says, folding her arms in an attempt to hide her trembling. “I'll give you one last chance. Meet me back here tonight, midnight. If you really care, you will."

She turns away from me before I can answer. I watch her, feeling helpless, saying nothing, as she vanishes back through that door. I should've told her, I should've sucked it up and told her the truth. I could've ended all of this. I got cold feet.

Meet me back here tonight.

I know where this is going to go. I know that it won't end well. But we both know full well that I'll do it.

Chapter Text

 I don't tell Pearl or Marina. For the first time in over a week, I don't talk to the real Four. I don't want anyone to know what happened. I don't want to be talked out of going.

Yet I can't stop thinking about what they would say. As I set aside my headset, as I'm cooking myself a half-hearted meal, as I pace circles around my apartment while the clock counts down to midnight, I imagine conversations with Four.

"Don't you dare go. You know this is a bad idea," she says.

And I do. But even so, I reply, I have to. I have to do this.

"Whatever she wants you for can't be good. Why else would she tell you to meet her alone, at midnight for cod's sake!"

It could be worse if I do not go. She will no longer trust me, and who knows what she will do then?

That always quiets Four's voice in my head. But even after I win that same argument several times over, I'm not brave enough to try it in real life. I know she'll come up with some point I haven't planned for, some argument I won't know how to counter. She always does.

Maybe that should tell me something, but I don't let myself think too hard about it. This, whatever this will be, could be my only remaining chance to make amends with Parallel Four. I have to do this, for her. And if it all goes south, like I'm sure it will, well... I deserve whatever's coming, don't I?

My phone buzzes incessantly as the hours pass. Four isn't happy with my silence, but I continue to ignore her. She goes so far as to call me when I take too long to answer her texts. Four never liked making phone calls, something about her voice sounding weird and words being too hard to make out. I hang up on her.

As determined as I am to meet with Parallel Four, it's a struggle to keep myself from falling over the edge of full-blown panic while I wait for the time to come. I want to do this. I have to do this. I'm terrified.

It's an eternity before the clock finally reads five minutes to midnight. The headset is in my hands. I take one last look around my apartment, an eerie sense of finality coming over me. I won't see this place again until this is all over. I know, somehow, it ends tonight.

The second time I enter the Memverse during the nighttime is no less unsettling than the first.  I understand that Parallel Four wanted to meet in private, but I wish there was some way to do that during the daytime. I can’t help but jump at every shadow crawling across the gray walls.

Through the darkness, Parallel Four's glowing, red eyes draw my attention almost immediately. She's sitting outside of the Spire, back hunched, hands clasped together as she watches and waits. Cipher is at her side. Even it, who has lived its whole life here, seems out of place in the shadows. What is it doing here?

Parallel Four stands when she notices me approaching. She tears her hands apart and shakes them out like she's loosening up in preparation for a fight. I’m sure I’m reading too much into it, but it makes me nervous nonetheless. Cipher slowly inclines its head to me.

"Greetings, Octoling," it says. It's as relaxed as ever, either unaware or uncaring of the tense atmosphere surrounding us. Not wanting to be impolite, I nod at it in return.

"You came," Four says, her voice jarring in the night’s silence.

"Did you think that I would not?" I reply.

"No. I mean, I didn't want to assume anything. Nothing else has been going my way, no point in getting my hopes up about this, too."

"Well, I have come. What do you need?"

Parallel Four is quiet for a moment. She turns to Cipher, to the Spire of Order behind her, then back to me. She almost seems... Uncertain.

"We're going up the Spire," she says at last. "If we leave now, we'll be out by the morning."

I blink at her. It takes a moment for the words to settle in, then the bewilderment hits me like a train. I don't know what I had been expecting. Honestly, I hadn't prepared at all, too busy overthinking whether I should tell anyone else and what they would say. I came into this without a plan. But, whatever I could have prepared for, I doubt it would have been this. This is not good.

"Right—right now?" I say, giving my head a slight shake in an attempt to clear my thoughts.

"Yes, right now. And you're coming with me."

"But the bugs—the Spire is not safe, it could be—"

"I don't care about the bugs!" She interrupts. "I'm not even sure that there are any. Either way, I'd rather risk it and be free than stay stuck here for who knows how much longer."

"We—we cannot, we cannot go up the Spire. Marina has closed off the elevator. It is impossible, even if I agreed to go."

"Yet more proof that you're all trying to keep me here," Four mutters. "But that doesn't matter now. Cipher knows a way in, and it's agreed to show us."

"My Cousin pursues answers. It is an honorable endeavor," Cipher says.

"We should ask Marina first. Or tell Pearl, or Acht."

"Absolutely not. They'll only stop us from going. So can I trust you, or are you going to work against me too?"

"We cannot go," I say, pleading, desperate, unable to think of another excuse.

"And why not?" Four snaps.

I don't speak. My blood is ice, my hearts pounding too loud in my ears. I can tell her the truth now, and we won't have to go. That'll be it. I should tell her now. I have to tell her now, but the thought makes me sick to my stomach. I can't. I can't. I can't.

It's now or in the Control Room. She'll learn tonight, either way. And either way, I'll have to face her alone. I'll be the only one around for her to take her anger out on.

"There's no reason we can't go," she continues, answering her question for me. "I need you to come with me. You've been up the Spire lots of times, you'll get us through quick. You can tell the others that I blackmailed you or something. I don't care. Please, Eight."

I remain silent.

"Eight." There's a deep pain in her voice. "Please."

I meet her eyes. I move to shake my head no, then stop. I wring my hands. I look away. I can't do it, I can't tell her. My mouth refuses to move.

"Please."

Now or in the Control Room… Neither option is anywhere near good. I can't bring myself to tell her. If we go up the Spire, I won't have to; she'll find out on her own. She'll be so much angrier that I didn't tell her myself. But I can't. I can't, I don't know how.

"Okay." I finally whisper. "I will come with you."

"Thank you. I... Yeah. Thank you." She takes a step toward me, lifting her arms as if to give me a hug. She thinks better of it and wraps them around herself instead, pretending that was what she was intending to do the whole time.

She looks away from me and back to Cipher. "Alright. Lead the way.”

"Very well," it says, nodding and turning away from us. "The path is long. The way will be shown to you."

Cipher does not lead us into the Spire, as I had expected. Instead, we follow it away from the building, past its shop, out of the Square entirely. I had never spent much time in these areas outside of the Order Sector's Square. I can't help but feel out of place in the empty, white streets and alleyways, never meant to be traveled by users like me. This is the domain of the Memverse residents. I am a trespasser here. Four, however, seems as comfortable as she was in the Square. I wonder how much time she's spent wandering these streets while no one else was around.

I become more anxious the farther we're led from the Spire of Order. Where many of the buildings closer to the Square mirror those in real-world Inkopolis, now they have become entirely unfamiliar. It’s too quiet. No one speaks, no noise to drown out my thoughts. I fear I’ve made another horrible decision in agreeing to this.

Cipher seems to know where it's going, but more and more distance is being put between us and the Spire we were supposedly trying to break into. Even Four is beginning to have doubts, to the point where she asks Cipher, "Are you sure this is the right way?"

"It is certain," Cipher says as it continues walking. "Many times have I traveled this path. The distance now is short."

"I'll take your word for it."

And, as promised, Cipher stops not ten minutes later. I look around for a door, a tunnel, something, but the location seems no different than any other in this city. It's a wide alleyway with a dead end. No secret entrance to the Spire in sight.

"This is the way of exit," Cipher announces, waving an arm toward the alley. "Holes in the source allow holes in the world. Many possibilities are outside of the boundaries. Travel may be to anywhere."

"What you’re saying is saying there's a spot over here where we can clip out of bounds? We can get into the elevator that way?" Parallel Four asks. I’m inwardly thankful for her translation.

"Free of the boundaries, all which is locked may be entered,” Cipher says.

I know very little about computers and code, but I recall what Marina had once said about entities falling through the floor. She had told us that the Square was safe from such glitches, but we're nowhere near the Square anymore…

"This is gonna be interesting," Four says. "Do I just walk in there? Where's the hole?"

"Within the corner of the North and West is the point of exit."

"I think I understand." Four says, before turing to me and holding out a hand. "Shall we?"

I hesitate.

If I go, there's no turning back. This is my last chance to change my mind.

Parallel Four waves her outstretched hand, as if I hadn't already noticed it. "Come on. I'm not jumping through a hole in the world on my own."

“This is a terrible idea,” whispers the voice of my imaginary Four. “If you have a cell in your brain, you’ll know you shouldn’t go.”

Yes. I know.

I take a deep breath, and put my hand in Parallel Four’s.

"I’m sure it’ll be fine,” she assures me. “Cipher’s done this millions of times before.”

I nod, though she has misunderstood the source of my anxiety.

Side by side, we make our way past Cipher and into the unassuming alley. The prawn doesn't follow. If it had a sense of humor, I'd wonder if it was sending us in to run directly into a very solid wall. I can hardly wrap my mind around the fact that we won't. Where does the hole start, anyw—

Oh. 

"May you find the answers you seek, Cousin," Cipher says, just as Parallel Four and I fall straight through the ground.

Chapter Text

        Time passes in slow motion while I watch my foot sink through concrete as solid as air. I begin to fall forward. As the ground comes up to my knees, I pull my hand away from Four's, throwing my arms out to catch myself. It's no use. My hands go through the concrete as if it isn't there. I squeeze my eyes shut, everything in me screaming that I'm going to fall face-first to the ground. A second passes. I don't feel anything.

"Holy carp!" Parallel Four exclaims. "This is so—"

She cuts off abruptly as I hear a dull thud and a grunt of pain. Not a second later, with no time to panic, I hit the ground beside her. My still outstretched arms buckle under the impact, providing little protection. My face smacks against the floor. A burning pain shoots through my nose, bringing tears to my eyes.

"Ow! Carp!" Four says, somewhere beside me. "You'd think Cipher would have given us more of a warning. Cod. Oh, this is so weird. You good, Eight?"

l respond with a feeble groan, still lying face down on whatever had broken our fall. It can't be the street. We were falling for too long…

"Still alive, awesome. So are you seeing what I'm seeing? This is insane."

I prop myself up on my aching arms and open my eyes. Then promptly close them again, because surely they aren't working properly. Where I had expected to see more concrete, or tile, or really anything solid, I see... Nothing. I'm lying on empty air.

My second look gives me no different results. Parallel Four and I are floating in the sky, with the buildings of the Order Sector suspended not far above our heads. I see Cipher, too, levitating several feet above us. It turns back toward the Square without another word, leaving us alone here. I begin to feel nauseous.

"Ooo, Eight, your nose is bleeding," Parallel Four says, interrupting my thoughts. "Hit the ground pretty hard, huh?"

I quickly wipe my wrist under my nose, and discover that she's right. My nose is still stinging quite badly, come to think of it. At least it’s not bleeding as much as it could be. It’s not broken.

"It seems so," I say, grimacing. "Where...  Where is the ground?"

"I think we're inside of it," She answers. "This is what it's like to be out of bounds."

"But... If we are inside the ground, why can I not see it?"

"I dunno. Something super technical, I bet. This is a simulation, you can't rely on real-life rules. I wouldn't think too hard about it."

"Hm..."

Parallel Four gets to her feet, offering a hand to help me up. I take it gratefully. Despite the apparent solid surface beneath our feet, looking down to see nothing but a dark blue sky makes my head spin. It's difficult to keep my balance when I can barely tell which direction is up.

"Now we can walk to the Spire, I guess," she says. "Look at that, you can see the lower floor from here. This is so weird..."

Indeed, without the ground to hide it, the ominous gray box of the storage floor is visible beneath the Spire of Order. Seeing it now from the outside, it's even larger than I had thought. It must be at least a couple of miles long. It's a miracle I was ever able to find Parallel Four in a room that size.

Her hand still in mine, she nudges me lightly with her shoulder. "C'mon, we don't have time to waste. I want to be in and out by morning."

"Right. Yes.”

As Four drags me along toward the distant Spire, I try my hardest not to look down. It turns out that it's rather difficult to ignore the empty space when it's all around me. With every step, I fear that this will be the one that doesn't land on something solid, that I'll slip like I did in the alley and be swallowed up by the infinite expanse of nothing below.

Vague memories resurface from a life long ago. Invisible platforms, a piece of Octarian technology that had been growing in popularity. I hated them. No one could make me set foot on one of those things until it was well-inked into visibility, but at that point, it was no better than a normal platform. What was wrong with visible platforms anyway?

This ground, however, doesn't ink.

Four and I both try it on our way to the Spire, but our ink vanishes the moment it hits the invisible surface. This glitch lacks the one reassurance that those horrible Octarian platforms had provided. However much I despised that technology, I despise this tenfold. We're only here because of a flaw in Marina's program; How can I know that the same flaw won't cause us to fall through whatever surface we're walking on? How do I know it can't kill us instantly? I can respawn, but can Parallel Four?

At this thought, I tighten my grip on her hand.

"You alright?" She asks.

"I do not like this. This is dangerous."

"Yeah, I know, but it's too late to turn back now."

She must sense that her answer does nothing to comfort me, for she quickly adds, "Cipher's done this hundreds of times, and it's fine! Come on, we're almost to the Spire. We'll be out of here before you know it."

I nod, trying to fake relief. In truth, I think I would rather stay here than ever reach the Spire, no matter how much I might hate being out of bounds. Entering the Spire is one more step toward Parallel Four discovering the truth about herself. Maybe if we become stuck here long enough, we’ll still be here when the others return in the morning and find out what we did. Marina will be able to ensure that Parallel Four never glitches her way into the Spire.

No. No, I can't go thinking like that again. I hate this, I hate this, I hate this with every fiber of my being, but I have to do it. I remind myself over and over.

Even so, I'm unable to keep from making silent prayers that some obstacle will come up between us and the Spire. If that were the case, it wouldn't be my fault when we're prevented from reaching our destination. I wouldn't have to finish this.

If Four notices that something is off, she doesn't bring it up. She's as eager to make it to the Spire as I am reluctant to do the same. But she, unlike me, has every good reason to want what she wants. We both know it. We continue on.

In truth, the journey to the Spire of Order isn't nearly as long as it feels. Without buildings to navigate around, this walk takes much less time than the one to reach Cipher's glitched entryway. To my secret disappointment, we're standing beneath the Spire of Order within half an hour. There was nothing to stop us. Nothing to save me. Staring up at the towering building, I am consumed by dread.

Before us is a large column of white concrete, connecting the Spire above our heads to the storage floor hanging below. I can only assume it's the elevator shaft. Several large plastic crates are stacked beside it as what appears to be a makeshift staircase, leading right up to the bottom of the Spire. They're the same crates that had filled the storage room, the same ones that Cipher had apparently been stealing. It's clear that they hadn't occurred here naturally.

"I'd say that's our way in," Parallel Four says. "I'm going to take a look. So... Can I have my hand back?"

I look at her, then down at our interlocked hands. I know it’s only my anxiety talking, but I suddenly fear that I'll fall through the invisible surface the second I let go of her. Or, worse, she will. Even if those are stupid, panic-induced ideas, what I know for a fact is that letting her go will mean that I won't be able to keep her from entering the elevator. This is it.

"Eight?" She says, shaking my hand. "You're acting weird again. I guess we could both go if you want—"

I release her hand before she finishes the sentence, before I can overthink it too much more. Aside from a painful spike in my anxiety, nothing bad happens. It's fine.

"Oh. Thanks." Four takes a step toward the crates, pauses, and looks back at me. "I know I already asked, but are you sure you're doing alright?"

"I am okay," I lie.

"No, you're not," she says. "Listen, I know you're not happy about sneaking into the Spire, but I have to do this."

"I know."

"There's something else bothering you, isn't there?"

"No."

"Come on. We both know that's a lie."

I don't answer. I look down, avoiding her gaze, but quickly look up again as the nothingness under my feet begins to make me feel dizzy. Parallel Four is still staring at me.

"Okay, I tried to help," she says. "If you're not going to let me, fine. You'll have to deal with yourself until I'm out of here, then I don't care what you do. But I need this, and I need it now. You owe me this. I'm not going to feel bad for you."

That last part she seems to be telling herself more than me. I don’t think her words have hurt me as much as she hoped they would. I may not be nearly as skilled as her when it comes to reading between the lines, but I'm good enough. She's trying very hard to to be upset at me. Yet she still cares, still worries, however much she wishes she didn't. It gives me the slightest bit of comfort.

But...

Will she feel the same after we reach the end, once she learns the truth? She won't. I know it. Her trust, her friendship, it’s all temporary, and it will be over by the end of the night. The warm feeling fades quickly following this realization.

I do nothing but watch as Parallel Four climbs the makeshift staircase. A few steps away from the top, she reaches up to touch the bottom of the Spire. Her hand goes through as if the concrete base wasn't there. She shoots me a glance before taking another step, and to my surprise, thrusting her entire head up into the floor of the Spire. A few seconds later, she pulls back out and gives me a thumbs-up.

"It's the elevator," she says. "I'm going in. Come up here after me."

I nod in agreement. That seems to be enough to satisfy her. She climbs the last few crates until she's standing on the very top of the pile, only her boots still visible under the base of the Spire. Then they disappear too, as she steps up through the floor and into the elevator. I'm alone now.

I begin to walk toward the crate staircase, but soon I find myself hesitating. Four isn't with me anymore. I could leave the Memverse to contact Pearl and Marina, and she wouldn't be able to stop me. They might be able to come before Parallel Four gets too high up in the Spire on her own. They might be able to stop her.

For a moment, I'm seriously considering it. It would be so easy. It would spare me from the pain to come.

No.

No, no, no.

I can't keep delaying the inevitable. I can't keep running away, claiming it's for Parallel Four's sake when in reality it's me who's scared of the truth. That this was the best we could do. That I can't protect her. That in the end, it wasn't enough. Because it wasn't, and it never would be. There is no easy way out of this. Not if truly care about Parallel Four.

And I do.

I won't betray her trust. I'll go through with this. If I am unable to tell her the truth out of my own mouth, I'll be at her side when she hears it at the top of the Spire. And if she needs someone to blame, I'll accept it in its entirety. If she needs someone to hate, she can hate me with everything she has. If she needs someone to fight and scream at as her reality shatters around her, I'll be there for her. Maybe that's all I can do.

I climb the crates. I stand up through the floor of the Spire, moving through the walls like a ghost. And Parallel Four is there to meet me in the elevator, taking my hand, pulling me through.

"What took you so long?" she asks.

Chapter Text

        "Never thought I'd be so happy to see an elevator," Parallel Four says, running a hand over one of the metal walls. "Well, Eight, this is it. If all goes well, I'll never see the Order Sector again."

I furrow my brow, the pain in my chest sharpening. She must notice through the reflection on the wall, for she turns to face me, folding her arms.

"'Kay, do you need a pep talk or something? You're clearly anxious, and I doubt that's going to help us get through all these floors."

"I am okay," I assure her.

"Again, you're not, but I know you're going to let me do anything about it. Look—" She pauses to place a hand on my shoulder, waiting for me to meet her gaze before she continues. "As soon as we finish this, I'll be out of your hair. If your friends get mad at you, don't hesitate to blame everything on me. If there's something else you're worried about, I'm right here. Talk to me. There's no one else around. I covered all the bases, yeah?"

I force on what I hope is a reassuring smile. "I will be fine. Thank you, though."

She lets her arm drop to her side, still eyeing me. My smile falters under her scrutiny. She knows full well I'm keeping things from her, but it seems she's given up on trying to get it out of me. That doesn't mean she's happy about it.

"Good," she finally says. "No need to keep standing around, then. How many floors are there?"

"There are thirty."

"Right. Yeah, that's doable. Let's get to it."

Four turns on her heel, taking one long step over to the elevator's control panel. She traces her finger over it until she finds the "up" button, looks to me for confirmation, and presses it at my nod. The elevator rumbles around us as it begins its ascent to the first floor.

This, I realize, is the first time I've been in the elevator without Pearl or Acht. Marina, too, had been with me since I rescued her from Order all those months ago. It feels empty now with only Parallel Four and me. Empty, and quiet.

Four never was a very quiet person. But even with her little comments now and then, the silence in the spaces between is oppressive. I miss the subtle hum of Pearl's drone propeller blades, the click of Marina's keyboard. I hadn't realized how comforting it was until now. My already high anxiety makes the absence of my friends seem much more pressing, especially considering that without Pearl, I will have no drone to help me.

I feel a slight lurch under my feet as the elevator comes to a stop. With a sharp ding, the door slides open, revealing the abnormally large room beyond. The first floor. My chest tightens at the sight of the stage ahead, one I had beaten many times with ease. We're really doing this.

Parallel Four immediately makes for the door, but thankfully I am present enough to catch her hand before she can set foot outside of the elevator. She whirls to glare at me, twisting out of my grip. No, not glaring. She simply looks like that. It’s fine.

"You have to stay," I tell her.

"You can't be serious,” she says flatly. “I know you're a seasoned pro and all, but I can help! It'll speed things up."

"The elevator will return to the ground floor if no one is inside of it," I say. "I think it will be faster if I am the one to clear the floors while you remain in the elevator."

"That seems like a stupid feature. Is there another reason you don't want me on the floor?"

"No. I promise I am not lying about the elevator."

And this time, I'm really not. I'm merely denying her the whole truth.

While I'm sure that Parallel Four is just as skilled a fighter as her real-world counterpart, there is the issue of her ink. She's a jelleton. Not only will she be unable to do any harm to the enemies, chances are she will wind up helping them unintentionally. She would be nothing more than an obstacle on the battlefield. That, and her similarities to the jelletons might cause her to ask too many questions that I would rather not have to answer quite yet. I'm lucky to have the elevator defaulting as an excuse to keep her away.

"Fine," Parallel Four says, folding her arms. "I'll take your word for it. I'll stay. But you better not take too long out there."

I try another smile, but I don't think it works very well. "I will be quick."

I can feel her eyes on my back as I step into the cage. With the turbine tower, Bowl.Floor is one of the easiest in the Spire. I've never had a problem with it in the past. I’m sure I'll clear it easily even without Pearl. Even while Parallel Four is watching. Even while I’m spending so much of myself just to keep the looming monster of panic at bay.

At first, I have no trouble guiding the tower around the stage. I begin to feel a bit more confident. However, as I near the final checkpoint, I have several close calls with the Battering Lentos, enough that I’m forced to retreat for some time. Pearl would always warn me if a jelleton came too close. I suppose I had come to rely on her more than I had accounted for.

Aside from that, the floor is a breeze. The turbine tower clicks into its checkpoint. Within a few minutes, I'm super jumping back to the elevator.

"Those are jelletons, huh?" Parallel Four says at my return. "They're a lot creepier when they're... Alive. Is alive the right word for them?"

"It works," I answer.

"Hm. Well, you did a good job. I’ll admit that was pretty fast."

"Thank you, this was a very easy floor."

Something seems strange about her, a solemn thoughtfulness that isn’t normal. I don’t like it. Without another word, she presses a button, closing the elevator behind me. We begin our rise toward the second floor.

"They had black ink," she says after a minute of uncomfortable silence. "It looked like the same color as mine."

"Uh... Yes," I say, nodding slowly.

"That's weird. Really weird..."

I don't reply. I have an opening to tell her the truth, but I feel like I'm going to choke when I so much as consider it. But, at the very least, I won't lie to her anymore. I won't say that it must be a coincidence, or that it must be a bug. It’s not a bug. It's not a coincidence. She'll figure that out by the end of the night; if she connects the dots before then, it doesn't make a difference. That's what I tell myself.

"I couldn't change my ink color, either," Parallel Four continues. She seems to be talking to herself now. "I don't like that. It must have something to do with whatever caused me to look like this."

I relax slightly. She hasn't figured it out yet. I'm ashamed for feeling relieved, but I am nevertheless. Parallel Four, however, appears more agitated than before. Her comments are a bit less frequent. A bit more forced.

The second floor, thankfully, is not much more difficult than the first. I clear it quickly, and we proceed to the third floor. And the fourth after that.

The higher we ascend in the Spire, the greater the challenge it is to clear each floor. Our pace slows significantly by the seventh. As the levels increase in difficulty, Pearl's absence begins to feel less like an inconvenience and more like I’m missing half of myself. Her warnings were one thing; but as I come to the many multi-level stages, what I miss the most is her ability to glide. Too many times I jump from a ledge and reach out for her, only to be met with empty air and a rather painful distance to fall.

Normally, Four would find this funny. Parallel Four doesn't even mention it.

"You're doing great," she says. "At this rate, we'll make it to the Control Room way earlier than I expected."

Maybe it would be fine from anyone else, but from Four, it worries me. She’s faking her optimism. For my sake or her own, I'm not sure. I want to ask her if she's okay, like a real friend would, like she has done for me so many times. In the end, I never do. I don't know why.

We reach the tenth floor without a life lost. I recognize the dimly lit stage the moment the elevator door slides open; Layered-Rotator.Floor, home of the Asynchronous Rondo.

"Woah," Parallel Four says, peering out at the enormous, circular room. "This doesn't look anything like the other floors. Is it a boss?"

"Yes," I answer. "I have fought it many times before, it will not be a problem. I will return shortly."

Four nods, still staring at the huge jelleton occupying the center of the stage. While the Order Dualies may not be the best for fighting this particular boss, I feel lucky that it wasn't the Parallel Canons instead. I shouldn't get my hopes up too much, however. There is still floor twenty.

The Asynchronous Rondo fights viciously. The battle is longer and harder than it would have been if I had had Pearl with me, but I persevere. The boss falls before me once again. I soon return to the elevator, feeling no pride in my victory.

"Nice job!" Four says, giving me a pat on the shoulder. "Only twenty floors to go, yeah? We're making great time."

I smile and nod for what must be the hundredth time. I don't want to be reminded. The time I have left as Parallel Four's friend is counting down too quickly, and I'm still here, silently wasting every moment I have left. We're making great time, indeed.

The following floors all blur together. I survive by mere instinct, my mind elsewhere. Everything feels wrong, twisted, darker, harder. I have done this countless times before, but this time... This time is different. The walls crack a little more with every floor cleared. Every win feels like a loss, every misstep is sickening. I'm scared.

Of course, instincts alone aren't enough to get me through the more difficult floors, no matter how honed mine are. It must be by sheer luck that I make it as far as I do before I lose my first life. It happens on floor sixteen, surrounded by jelletons and out of ink. Four is at my side the moment I respawn in the elevator.

"Cod, are you okay? That looked tough."

"I am fine. It was only one life," I say, faintly surprised by the concern in her tone.

"Eight, I know you're a better fighter than that. I know you don't want to talk about whatever it is you're dealing with, but don't you think it'd help? If it's affecting you that badly..."

"It was only one life," I repeat. "I will be fine. I will not die again."

"You won't talk to me."

"I... No."

"You're driving me insane, Eight." She says sharply, turning away as if she can hardly bear to look at me. "I'm trying to be nice and forgiving but you keep pushing me away, and you won't tell me why! This isn't like you! It can't be a problem with me, we've been friends for years now and I know you haven't suddenly decided that you don't like me. So what is your problem?!"

"I am not... I am not pushing you away," I say.

"Yeah, right. And you're not hiding things from me, either. Or talking about me behind my back, or avoiding me, or ignoring me, or acting like a total fake! No! You're not doing any of those things, everything is completely normal!"

"I am—"

"Don't! Don't say you're sorry. You keep saying that like it’s going to make up for all of this. If you were really sorry, you would be doing something about it! Just go. The sooner we finish here, the sooner you never have to talk to me again."

"I do not want that, Four."

She doesn't answer, her back still turned on me. I wait.

"I said go," she snaps a minute later. "Finish the floor. We're wasting time here."

The wall cracks a little more. It can hardly hold the panic. I do as she says, leaving the elevator, returning to the floor. I don't die again. When I return, tired and spattered in black ink, all she says is, “Alright. Next floor.”

From that point on, Parallel Four stops trying to make small talk. She doesn't congratulate me for clearing the next floor or the one after that. I feel awful, but I don't know what to say to her. She will probably interrupt me again, anyway. I still can't blame her. I would be angry at me too.

Floors seventeen and eighteen pass without a word between us. Only after I complete floor nineteen does it finally become too much for me to bear. I can't lose her friendship before I have to. I want to enjoy her presence while I still can. This is my last chance, and I'm ruining it like I have ruined everything.

So, finally, I muster the courage to choke out one word.

"Four?"

She looks up but doesn't answer. I can practically feel the hostility radiating from her.

"I... I want to keep being your friend. I enjoy talking to you. I am sorry that I have made it seem otherwise. I am sorry that I have not been able to explain anything. I understand if you hate me now, or if you do not want to be friends anymore."

There's a pause before she answers.

"I don't hate you, idiot,” she says. “I am very angry at you at the moment, and I am trying very hard to control myself, but no, I don't hate you. I hate being out of the loop, being stuck here and not knowing why. So forgive me if I doubt that you're experiencing a genuine physical inability to tell me anything. You could at least let me know why you can't tell me what's going on here."

"...I cannot, because I... I am scared."

"Scared of what? Of talking to me?"

"No. Well... Yes, I suppose."

"You can talk to me about anything, you know that. You’ve never had a problem with it before."

"It is not so easy this time, Four."

"How bad is it for you to be so vehemently opposed to telling me? You've told me about some pretty messed up stuff in the past. I can handle a lot."

Before I have a chance to respond, our conversation is interrupted by the ding of the elevator as it reaches the twentieth floor. I had almost forgotten. We pause, turning in unison toward the opening door.

I recognize the room immediately. And at that moment, my blood runs cold. I should have known. I should have prepared for this.

On the other side of the elevator door, its massive stage sprawled before me, is Intensifying-Harmony.Floor.

Chapter Text

        Of course.

Of course it would be this floor. If it is possible for something to go wrong, it will. It's the way of my life.

The world is starting to spin around me, my breath getting caught in my throat. I have to do it. I will have to fight the Parallel Canons. I will have to fight them while Parallel Four is watching. There is no way she will have no questions, no fears or ideas. But I have to do this. I have to. I have to.

"Uh... This is a boss floor, right?" Four asks, shading her eyes with one hand while she peers across the stage. "Where's the boss? Eight?"

I had already begun toward the cage. I want to get away, to run, to pull the elevator doors closed behind me, but I know I can't. The most I can do is put some distance between myself and Four before she sees them.

"Hey, Eight! You didn't answer me!" She calls, leaning out of the elevator door. "Oh, don't you dare leave, we were in the middle of a serious conversation! Eight, do not get into that cage! No, you—clammit Eight! Isn't this what we were just talking about?!"

She continues shouting as the cage carries me away, but I can barely hear her between the growing distance and the too-fast pounding of my heartbeat in my ears. I can't handle her right now, not on top of everything else. Here's another helping of guilt to feed the monster of panic.

At the far end of the room, on a balcony identical to the one I had just left behind, the first Parallel Canon emerges from its pool of black ink. This one has no hair or ears. It's just a robot.  But it has the same red eyes, the same silver skin, the same white outfit. And Four, too, is staring out at that Parallel Canon, that thing that bears an uncanny resemblance to her. The thought makes me sick. I don't want her to see it.

I drop onto the central platform just as the Parallel Canon steps into its own cage. I go through the motions: picking up the armor, painting the area around me, hiding in my lucky-chip yellow ink as I wait for the first enemy to arrive. I have done this so many times that these first steps have become habitual. This, however, leaves me with far too much time to think about what Parallel Four must feel watching this.

So lost in thought am I that I almost miss the moment that the Parallel Canon drops from its cage. It immediately begins inking the ground around it, slowly but surely making its way to the central platform. Seeing as I haven't yet moved, it's taking all the time it can get to prepare.

It's one enemy. One Parallel Canon. It isn't even one of the primary ones, with their Four-like tentacles and pointed ears. But it looks like her. In a way, it is her. I've never had a problem killing these things before, but now...

The Parallel Canon's black drone locks its laser pointer onto me with an ominous buzz. At that moment, the jelleton itself dives into its ink and darts toward me.

This is enough to snap me out of whatever fearful trance I'd found myself in. I hurriedly toss a curling bomb off the side of the platform, its trail of ink cutting off the Parallel Canon's path. As I'd expected, the jelleton swerves to avoid the bomb rather than simply jumping over the ink. These standard ones aren't quite as smart as those that are more similar to Four.

After the curling bomb detonates, the Parallel Canon circles back around. I wait for it to emerge from the ink at the edge of its painted zone, and then I take it out with my Order Dualies.

"Ouch..." it groans just as it’s splatted.

It has Parallel Four's voice.

I retreat back to the center of my platform, covering my mouth with one hand. I've become nauseous from panic before, it's not new. But I have never felt it to this degree. I'm going to throw up. It sounded just like her. The walls crumble away.

I swallow hard, which does little to help. I resist the urge to sit down until the world stops spinning, to curl into a trembling ball, to run to the far corners of the stage and pray the Parallel Canons don't find me. I can't do that, not here, not now. I need to focus. I need to survive.

The second Parallel Canon drops. I dive into my ink, luring it toward my position. When it's close enough, I leap out and dodge roll behind it, bringing it to a swift end. It too cries out in Parallel Four's voice as it dies. I wonder if she hears it. I cough and gag into my hands as I back into my original position. Nothing comes up.

For a little while, no Parallel Canons arrive. It's the break before the next wave. I would normally spend what little time I have inking the stage, but instead, I'm sitting on the edge of the central platform with my arms wrapped around myself, retching between gasps for air.

This isn't good. I know I shouldn't fight in this state, but I can't calm down, either. The idea seems completely preposterous. I see and hear Parallel Four in these jelletons, and killing them is killing her. She's watching me kill her. She will watch me kill her over and over and over. She will watch me kill her and remember how I had tried to kill her before. She will understand.

I can't do it. I have no choice. I hate this, I hate this, I hate this.

The next Parallel Canon steps into its cage, ending my short reprieve. I force myself to stand on shaking legs. I force myself to pick up my dualies. I want to cry, but I have to keep going.

The third Parallel Canon dies at my hand. The fourth is killed soon after. Then the fifth. Each of their agonized wails echoes in my mind, blending together until all I can hear is their synthetic voices screaming to the beat of my hearts.

I stumble and fall to my knees as soon as the second wave is finished. I clutch my chest, breathing heavily, unable to get enough air. I won't make it. I will die, and I will have to face Parallel Four after what she's seen. I retch again, my throat burning from the strain.

I practically have to crawl to make it back to the central platform before the final wave begins. Despite everything, I'm still trying to fight. The thought of going back to Parallel Four almost seems worse than this. She will have so many questions, so many questions that might mean death to answer. She will hate me. I am a killer, a liar, a coward, I am one who deserves to be hated. But I don't want it.

The final wave begins. The sixth Parallel Canon lands on the stage. By some miracle, I stand once again. And I resume the massacre.

Every one of my deadly instincts, forged by a soldier's childhood, sharpened by the trials of the Deepsea Metro, they all come to my aid right then. Even in my panic, I am a deadly weapon. Especially in my panic. I fight with the fury of a cornered animal, so lost in my terror that I am almost unaware of what I'm doing.

Until the final Parallel Canon arrives.

Somewhere in my wild attacks, I had moved away from the center, closer to the back of the stage. But I am not too far away to see her drop from the cage, making a dramatic landing with a Triple Splashdown.

Everything comes into painful focus. For a moment, I am frozen in place, staring at her. This one... It's Parallel Four.

No. No. Not her.

"We have never seen one act so disorderly," she says in a flat voice. "You must be terminated."

The Parallel Canon jumps off of the platform and begins to advance, inking the ground in front of her as she goes. I take a step back, feeling suddenly weak.

"Wait," I choke out. "No. I do not want to—want to hurt you, Four."

"Then you will be easily defeated."

"I am sorry. I am sorry," I say. Tears are finally beginning to trickle down my face. I can't hold them back anymore.

She doesn't respond, except to raise her Order Shot.

I run.

I hear the sound of inkfire behind me, but I don't look back. I toss a curling bomb and dive into its ink, swimming for my life away from the Parallel Canon. The bomb explodes, and I throw another. My special charges. I hit the edge of the stage. With nowhere else to run, I'm forced to turn and face Parallel Four. The trail of yellow ink I'd left behind is now covered by her own black one.

The Parallel Canon wastes no time talking. She lunges out of her ink toward me, already firing. My mind blanks. Before I realize what I'm doing, I've already activated my Reefslider, propelling toward her. She tries to swim away. She doesn't swim fast enough.

I don't attempt to catch myself after the Reefslider explodes beneath me. I crumple to the ground, a sobbing, shaking mess. She's dead. She's dead, I killed her. Her sharp gasp of surprise morphs into a scream of pain in a never-ending cycle in my mind.

That was the last Parallel Canon. Somehow, I won. I'm not sure whether that was by good luck or bad, but at the moment, I can't find it in me to care. I'm terrified. I know they aren't Parallel Four, but they looked like her. They sounded like her. I killed them so easily, and she saw me do it. I'm a monster.

The rational part of me, still hanging on by a thread in the torrent of emotion, knows that I am not in my right mind. I am in the middle of a panic attack, possibly the worst one I have had in a long time. I don't have anyone or anything to comfort me. There can be no relief in this situation. Why did I believe I could take all of this alone? I should have gotten out when I had a chance, I should have gone for help. Now I'm going to die here. I will die, or go insane.

I'm not sure how long I lay there, gasping and crying on the ground. It could have been seconds, it could have been years. I hear a sound, faint and far away. I can't make it out. It comes again, slightly louder, just enough for me to hear the word over the sound of my terror.

"Eight!"

At first, another wave of fear shoots through me. It's a Parallel Canon. I can't fight again, I can't even get myself to stand. It'll kill me.

"Eight!"

No. All of the Parallel Canons are gone. This voice, this is her. Parallel Four. She's shouting at me from the elevator.

"Eight!!"

She's screaming my name. She doesn't sound angry, but I never can tell. She has to hate me. I can't take any more.

"Eight! Come back!"

No. I can't go back. I can't.

"Eight, please!"

She sounds... worried. That can't be right. She can't be worried about me, she can't still care after this.

"Eight!" She calls yet again. "I'm going to leave the elevator if you don't come back! I'll do it if I have to!"

I lift my head.

She would do that? She knows what will happen. We won't be able to continue up the Spire. She's made it clear how badly she wants to do this, yet she would sacrifice this chance, likely her only chance, out of worry for me?

"Fine! I'm coming over, just hang on a minute!" She says.

No, I can't do that to her. I've caused her enough suffering already. I have to do this, I have to finish this, for Parallel Four. I can survive her anger. I've been through worse, haven't I?

I push myself up onto my knees.

"Yeah! There you go, Eight!" I hear her shout.

I sit there for a time, gathering what courage I can muster. It isn't much, but finally, I super jump back to the elevator. With my whole body shaking uncontrollably, I stagger as my feet hit the floor. Parallel Four catches me before I fall. And, to my numb surprise, she pulls me into a hug.

"There you are," she says. "You're okay now. You're safe. Breathe."

I know this can only be the calm before her storm, but the fact that she would still prioritize comforting me over whatever she must be feeling is enough to cause another bout of racking sobs to escape my throat. I lean into her, and she squeezes me tighter. There is no universe where I deserve her. I wish she wouldn't have to go through so much pain.

Chapter Text

        I cry on Parallel Four's shoulder for a long while. She doesn't ask questions, yell at me, or so much as say a word about anything that had happened. Sitting close, she simply holds me. Her skin is cold on mine, but it’s a comfort more than anything else. All that matters is that she’s here.

"It's okay, it's okay," she quietly repeats. "You're okay."

It's not okay. I'm not okay. But her words, her presence, they do make me feel better. Little by little, my trembling subsides and my heartbeat slows. She's not angry. She doesn't hate me. If she did, she wouldn't be doing this. With time, my panic fades into a buzzing anxiety, then to a dull discomfort. My tears begin to dry. Only after the elevator has settled into silence does Parallel Four say anything more. But even then, it's not a question. It's not a spiteful remark.

"I'm sorry," she says.

Caught by surprise, I don't respond. Of everything I had expected her to say, that had been at the bottom of the list. She is apologizing to me? I'm the one to blame, at least in part, for everything she's going through, yet she's saying sorry to me?

"I'm sorry," she says again, soft and sincere. "I shouldn't have pushed you so much. I could tell you were having a hard time, but I made you keep going anyway. I was selfish and inconsiderate. I’m sorry."

I lean away from her just enough that I can meet her eyes. "No. I should be the one who is sorry. This—" I put a hand on my chest."—This is my doing. It is not your fault. You had every reason to do what you did."

"No, I didn’t. What I did was plain wrong. You wouldn't have had to go through all this if we'd turned back. You might not have said anything, but I know you wanted to."

“You did not force me to do anything, Four. I wanted to keep going."

"For my sake, right?"

I don't answer. While it's true that I had only been motivated by my desire to make things right with Parallel Four, the way she says it implies that that’s a bad thing.

"You only kept going because I wanted to," she continues. "You would've turned back if it weren't for me, and this wouldn't have happened. So, I'm sorry."

"Four, it is not your fault that I wanted to help you. That is my decision to make."

"Well, you wouldn't have decided to help me if I had never told you that I was going up the Spire. I'm sorry for whatever part I played in this, no matter how minor, okay? Please, just accept my apology. It'd make me feel a lot better if you did."

"Okay," I say. "I forgive you."

"Thanks." She pauses a few seconds, then adds, "Do you still want to turn back? If you want to, we... We can. Be honest."

I blink at her, surprised. I remember how eager she had been to reach the top of the Spire, no matter the cost. Even now, I can tell that she wants to keep going. She wants it more than I can understand. But I can also see that she's telling the truth. We will stop here, no questions asked, if I say the word. That'll be that.

I consider the offer.

A short time ago, I would have said yes without hesitation. I was scared. I may have had the right intentions, but I acted out of nothing but guilt. I didn't truly want Parallel Four to find out about herself. I hate to admit it, but it's the truth. What I really wanted was to make up for all the wrongs I had done her, to rid myself of the shame weighing so heavily on me. If something happened and we didn't reach the top of the Spire, it wouldn't have been my fault. I could claim I made an honest effort. I would have been secretly overjoyed.

Now, I find that I feel differently.

"No," I answer her at last. "We have come so far. We will finish this."

She tilts her head as if puzzled by my answer.

"Are you sure?" She asks. "You're not just saying that to make me happy, are you?"

I smile at her. Though it's weak and shaky, it's not fake. "You are the one who claims the ability to read me so well. You tell me."

She continues staring at me, head tilted, for a long moment.

"I hate nice people sometimes," she finally says. "They make me feel inadequate."

"You are not inadequate."

She shakes her head slowly. "That was a joke."

"I know," I say, getting to my feet. I offer her a hand and pull her up off the floor.

"So..." She sighs, looking at the now-closed elevator door. "Those were the jelletons, huh? The ones I happen to look like?"

The fear begins to well up again within me, but I push it back. I made this choice. I can and will endure the consequences, no matter how hard it is.

"Um... Yes," I say. "Those were the Parallel Canons."

"Before, when you said I looked like a jelleton, I thought you meant like... I vaguely resemble one. With the big red eyes and stuff. Not like... That. That thing was an exact copy of me. I mean, an exact copy of what I look like right now."

"Yes," I repeat. "They were made with your data. They are copies. I... I am sorry you had to see me kill them. I should have warned... Should have warned you..."

"I don't care about you killing them. Good riddance, if you ask me. But I am sorry that you had to do it."

"It was... Hard. But it is over now."

"I hope so. Those things were off-putting, to say the least."

I nod, looking away. There's another few wordless seconds before Parallel Four pipes up again.

"Anyways, I'm glad we got that over with. Onto the next floor?"

I furrow my brow at her. That was all? No more questions? Nothing? She's not even going to bring up the conversation we'd been having before this floor? That can't be it.

"You having second thoughts?" she asks. "We don't have to keep going, my offer still stands."

"No, no, we can go," I say quickly.

"Great. Floor twenty-one, here we come. Hey, is it going to have a vending machine like eleven?"

"Yes, it should."

"Sweet, we could use the break."

I study her, trying to figure her out. I know she hasn't suddenly decided that her questions don't matter, not after days of trying to squeeze answers out of me. She can't have forgotten them. Yet we arrive at the twenty-first floor, and she hasn't said a word about it. I pick up a couple of yellow chips, return to the elevator, and all she says is, "Alright, are we ready for the next one?"

"I suppose," I say, frowning.

"What do you mean 'I suppose?' You're not ready yet?"

"No, it is just... Four, I thought you would..."

"You thought I would what?"

I hesitate, then shake my head. "Never mind. We can go."

I should be perfectly happy with this, anxious as I was over the possibility of her questions. But something feels wrong. I don't want her to ask questions, but I know she should. I know she would, under normal circumstances. Is she bottling them up out of concern for me? Or is it something else...?

I'm forced to put my musings on hold when we reach the twenty-second floor. Having felt more grounded since my moment with Parallel Four, I clear the floor with little trouble. We continue on. Still, she says nothing; nothing about the Parallel Canons, nothing about the odd way I had treated her, nothing about why she is trapped here. I try to brush it off, but I can't help feeling unsettled.

As we go through the next few floors, the feeling only worsens. There's something wrong with her. I'm sure of it. I keep a close eye on her, and I start to notice things. She isn't talking enough. Her muscles seem tense. She is too restless. I spot her rubbing her hands together, drumming her fingers on her arms, shifting her weight from foot to foot with a nervous energy that can't be normal. I tell myself that there are hundreds of reasonable things for her to be anxious about, but seeing her like this makes me itch with worry.

By floor twenty-seven, I can no longer stand it. I have chosen to help her, so help her I will.

"Four, are you okay?" I ask.

"Yeah?" She replies like it should be obvious.

"You are always telling me not to lie."

"That's because you lie all the time, and I only lie when it's important."

"Why is it so important to hide what you are feeling?"

"You're the queen of hiding your feelings, you cannot be telling me this right now."

"You are setting a bad example for me."

Parallel Four lets out a sigh. "Fine. I'm just a bit nervous about reaching the top, alright? I don't know why. I'll be okay, though."

"Is that really all?"

"Yes."

I stare at her, as if I can will her to tell the truth with the force of my concern. She stares back, defiant, daring me to continue questioning her. We face off in silence for minutes that feel like hours.

She's hurting. I see it, and this time I refuse to ignore it. She has been hurting for days. Pearl, Marina, and Acht may have hurt her, yes, but I am the one who has caused her the most pain. I am the one who she trusted the most, so I am the one who had the most trust to break. I lied to her. I did horrible things. I can't imagine how I would feel if out roles were reversed. Somehow she still trusts me, but it's a wounded, weak thing, clinging to life with everything it has. She's hurting, and it can only get worse.

There are two floors left before the Control Room. The countdown to the end of Parallel Four's hopes and dreams is in the minutes. I'm scared, for her, and for myself. I don't think I will ever be rid of this fear. I wonder, for the thousandth time, if she will still tell me that we're friends after she knows the full extent of my lies. But that doesn't matter. The lying is over. Even if it hurts, she needs to know. I can’t keep her trapped in this delusion.

I had gone through all of this because I had been too terrified to tell her the truth. This could have been over hours, even days ago, but I couldn't do it. I didn't end it then, but I can do it now. I can tell her everything. I know it's far too late to confess without any consequences, but maybe it will be the slightest bit easier for her if she hears it from a friend.

I take a deep breath.

Am I really doing this? I could be throwing away everything I had with Parallel Four. I had until the top of the Spire, will I really give up the little time I have left?

Yes. Yes, I will. For her. I will do this one thing right.

"Four..." I say. With that one word, I feel I have stepped through a door that locks tight behind me. There is only one path forward. "I have to tell you something. Something... Something important."

"I don't think this is the best time, Eight," she says.

My eyes widen. For a moment, I’m at a loss for words. She had practically begged me to talk to her not long ago, and now it 'isn't the best time?'

"No, Four," I reply. "I must tell you now. I am going to answer your—"

"I don't care about that anymore," she interrupts, speaking a little bit too quickly. "I'm sorry for trying to force answers out of you when it was clearly making you upset. I'm not going to ask any more questions, and I don't need any more answers. Not right now."

"I have to—"

"Listen, if you really want to, you can talk to me about whatever it is once I'm out of the Memverse. We've wasted enough time already. We're almost to the top, let's just finish it out."

"It is—"

"Eight. Later."

Her tone is abnormally stern, enough so to shut my mouth. What is she doing? She wanted answers so badly, and now that I've finally decided to give them to her, she cuts me off? She's even more tense now, and she fidgets with a renewed vigor. It's as if she's distressed by my attempt to speak to her.

I contemplate telling her anyway, ignoring her interruptions. It might what's best for her. But... That selfish little part of me is glad that she doesn't want me to tell her the truth. Wouldn't it only make her more angry if I told her now, after she expressly told me not to? Now I have a bit of extra time with her. Now I don't have to be the one to tell her, and I don't have to feel bad about it. It's what she wants, after all.

The selfish voice wins. I stay quiet.

The last floors pass by in what at once seems like a horribly short and torturously long amount of time. Four is too agitated now to make small talk, and my anxiety is yet again rising as we near the Control Room. I push on regardless. For Parallel Four, I repeat over and over and over.

On floor twenty-nine, watching the final ∞-ball click into place, a sickening dread settles in my chest. The floor is completed. The jelletons vanish around me. And that's it, that was the last one. It's over.

That last jump back to the elevator is harder than I'd like to admit, but I make it. For Parallel Four. She seems distracted when I return, too wrapped up in her own thoughts. She doesn't congratulate me. She doesn’t welcome me back. She doesn’t appear as excited as I had expected her to be. A sadness intertwines with the dread, mourning the friend I haven't yet lost. I'm going to miss her when she turns on me.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" She asks, lifting her head.

I turn away, a pang in my chest. "I am sorry.”

She doesn't understand. With the press of a button, we are on our way to the end of it all. Floor thirty, the Control Room.

Chapter Text

        On that final elevator ride, neither Parallel Four nor I speak. We're in our own worlds. My mind is a whirlwind of emotions; fear, regret, grief, resignation, and hopelessness, all swirled into a nightmarish cacophony that makes me want nothing more than to curl into a ball and cry. But I don't. In the midst of the storm, my resolve holds strong. I will finish this. I won't be a coward, not this time.

Four... I don't know what Four is thinking. She's nervous, that much is clear. She leans on the wall of the elevator, staring at the floor, seeming unfocused. Though her behavior is worrying, it feels inhumane to try to comfort her now. I shouldn't torture her with such fleeting relief.

Now the elevator is shuddering to a halt. The doors are opening, revealing an arena I would recognize anywhere. In better days, the control room was my favorite floor of the Spire. Smollusk was always so happy to see us. I enjoyed our battles. Now, however, I wish I could be anywhere else. Where it had once been bright and beautiful, the nighttime sky shrouds the open room in darkness. It's the perfectly eerie setting for a reality to be destroyed. I wish I could return to the much less terrifying Intensifying-Harmony.Floor.

But this is what has to be done. No more running, no more lying. Parallel Four has to learn the truth.

I look at her. She's staring out at the vast space before us, unmoving, unspeaking. She seems just as reluctant as I am to take the first step. I wonder, why is she scared? She wanted this.

She notices me watching her but doesn't meet my eyes. "What?"

"It is okay for you to leave the elevator on this floor," I say. "There will be another to return us to the Order Sector."

"But I won't need to use it. Cause this is where I leave, right?"

I turn away, frowning. She's listening now. I should tell her the truth now, before it's too late. But, in my struggle to think up a decent way to explain her situation, I take too long to respond.

"Fine, okay," Parallel Four says, interrupting my thoughts. "I don't know why I'm so nervous. I'm sure it'll be fine. Let's just go and get this over with."

She extends a hand toward me. For a moment I do nothing but stare at it, confused, before realizing she wants me to take it. I keep forgetting that she doesn't yet despise me. Part of me worries over this gesture, for Four isn't someone who enjoys showing a need for comfort like she is now; but at the same time, I need it too. Maybe she can see that.

With my hand in hers, she pulls us toward the open door. I don't resist, no matter how badly I want to. We step over the threshold together. The elevator door slides shut behind us, and with it goes the elevator. We're locked out.

Four stops there, halfway across the balcony. She's gripping my hand so tightly that she's trembling. Maybe she already was. Through the silence, I can hear her every breath, slow and deliberate, like the exercises I use when I'm fighting panic.

"Four," I say, squeezing her hand, "What is wrong?"

"It's nothing, just nerves. I'll be okay," she replies.

"You never get this nervous. There is something more."

"The last few days have been rough, okay? I'm not— I'm not really in the best state of mind right now." She punctuates her answer with a humorless laugh, which only concerns me more.

"You were so excited for this before."

"I've had too much time to think since then. There are way too many things that could go wrong here. But I'm sure it'll be fine, I'll be fine."

I don't answer.

"Right, that's enough feelings talk for now," she says quickly. "Are we getting into this cage or what?"

The circle on the floor, marking the location of the cage, is only a few steps away. Parallel Four begins to move toward it, but I don't budge. She continues as far as she can go before our arms are stretched out taut between us. Stuck mere inches from the edge of the circle, she looks over her shoulder at me.

"Eight?"

I stare back at her, my hearts pounding ever faster. I can feel myself freezing up again, spiraling into terror. I will my feet to move before I can overthink it further. With each step I take toward her, Parallel Four takes another toward the cage. I speed up, and she does too. Only when she stands well within the circle of the cage does she stop and turn toward me. The distance between us shrinks to nothing. As the bars of the cage shoot up around us, I pull my hand free of Four's and instead wrap both arms tight around her.

"Woah. Okay," she says, startled, but it doesn't take long before she's hugging me back. I fight back tears as the cage carries us across the nothingness and toward the stage. I don't want to cry in front of her again.

"Are... Are you good?" Parallel Four asks. "Not that I don't like being hugged, but... You're shaking."

I take in shuddering breaths, trying to form the words without dissolving into tears. At last, I answer, "I am not ready."

All that preparation for nothing. Halfway through the sentence, I begin to feel hot streaks running down my face. This is really it, this is the end. I won't have this anymore. I won't have Parallel Four. What was the purpose of all of this, why her? She deserves so much better. I can't fix it. I can't do anything.

"Eight, you're kinda freaking me out," she says. "Why are you crying? You've done this loads of times before, yeah? You'll be fine."

"I am sorry. I am so, so sorry, Four."

"I know, I know. I forgive you. Okay? You don't need to keep beating yourself up over all that. The past is the past"

"I—Four, I—I wanted to— I wanted—" I stutter, but yet again, I can't get the words out. I can't tell her that I wanted to protect her, I wanted her to be happy, I wanted to fix this, I wanted to tell her the truth. The words that could have been come out as nothing but another choking sob.

"Hey, hey, shh," she says, rubbing my back. "Calm down. There's nothing to be scared of. You're okay."

But there's fear in her voice. It's faint, well-hidden, but it's there. She knows that something is wrong. She's known for a while now.

The cage begins to slow above the floor of the Control Room. Four pulls away from me with some effort. I don't want to let go of her, not yet. But she takes my hand again, meets my eyes.

"Sorry, it's just... Probably not a good idea to drop while we're busy hugging each other. You need to calm down. Whatever this is about, we can talk it out later, okay? I need you here for this."

I take a deep breath, wipe my eyes with my free hand, and give her a slight nod. I don't want to make this any harder than it already is. However much I may be suffering, she will suffer tenfold. I need to be strong.

The bottom of the cage opens beneath us. Hand in hand, Parallel Four and I fall to the floor below, the sound of our landing echoing through the silence. I scan the dark, empty space, trying to spot Smollusk. It usually would have taken notice of us long before now, but it doesn't delay much longer.

"Hewwo?" calls a small, familiar voice. "Is somebody... Eight?"

Out of the darkness floats the little white octopus, bobbing drowsily up and down. So that's why it took so long... It is late, I suppose, but I honestly didn't know that Smollusk was able to sleep.

I hurry to cover up the mess of my emotions with a mask of calmness.

"Hello, Smollusk," I say. "I am sorry if we woke you."

"Why are you here so wate? I was sweeping... "

"Uh... Who's the baby?" Parallel Four asks, nudging me with her shoulder.

"This is Smollusk. It is the final boss of the Spire."

"The—the baby?!"

"You wanna fight this wate?" Smollusk mumbles. "I guess I... Wait, who are you?"

Parallel Four takes a look around before pointing at herself, like there's anyone else Smollusk could be referring to. "Oh, me? I'm Four. And yeah, if we have the option, I think we'd rather not fight."

"You're a Pawawel Canon..." Smollusk says, drifting closer to her. "But you're a wittle weird for a Pawawel Canon."

Four's grip on my hand becomes almost painfully tight, mirroring the anxious spike in my chest. I suddenly feel dizzy, nauseous, strangled. But this has to happen. I only have to stand by and watch.

"I'm not a Parallel Canon," Four says, defensive. "I just look like one, for some reason... Listen, kid, I want to get out of this place. So I need to reconfigure my palette, right? Can you help me do that?"

"No, Pawawel Canon pawettes can't be weconfigured."

"I'm—I'm not a Parallel Canon. I told you. I know I look like one, but we think that's a bug of some sort. I need to fix it so I can get out of here."

"It's not a bug. All Pawawel Canons look like that. I think you look pwetty cool, personawy."

"Stop it," she snaps. "My body could be rotting out there, and you're here cracking stupid jokes! This isn't funny!"

"I wasn't joking," Smollusk says, sounding hurt.

"I don't care, just fix my clam soul already! I want to go home!"

"I can't fix your soul if you don't have weal one."

Silence.

Parallel Four's hand is shaking, whether out of anger, fear, or an awful mix of both. Her breathing is irregular. She's doing nothing to mask her emotions anymore.

I give Smollusk what I hope is a disapproving glare, but I feel too weak to put much force into it. My hearts feel like they're going to explode from my chest with how quickly they're beating. I want so badly just to run, to leave the Memverse completely and never come back. I don't, I can't. No, I have to be strong for Four.

It's a few minutes before she finally speaks up again.

"Okay. That's really not funny," she mutters. "I take back what I said about not wanting to fight. I don't care if you're a baby, you can't go around calling people soulless. Especially not in this context. Didn't your parents, or creators, or whatever teach you any manners?"

"I didn't mean to offend you..." Smollusk says. "Mawina told me it isn't good to wie."

"Then quit lying already!" Four shouts, desperation tearing through her voice. "I have a soul! I'm not a Parallel Canon! Let me go home!"

"This is your home."

"NO IT'S NOT!"

Smollusk flinches, flitting away from Parallel Four. After bobbing around for a moment, it turns to me instead.

"Where did you find it?" It asks.

My breath catches in my throat, but I manage to force out a hoarse answer. "Where—who?"

"The Pawawel Canon."

"I'M NOT A—" Parallel Four starts, but I quiet her with a hand on her shoulder.

"I found her on the storage floor." I try and fail to keep my voice level as I answer.

"Oh, I understand now! It's like I thought," Smollusk says, perking up. "You're the pwototype, the one that came on! I was wondering where you went."

"...What?" Four says. "How many times do I have to tell you, I'm not a Parallel Canon. I'm not an AI. I'm not a 'pwototype.' I'm Four, I'm a real, living inkling who got stuck here because of some glitch in your system, and you are going to get me out of here or I swear... I swear, I'll..."

I avert my gaze, letting my hand slip off her shoulder. "No, Four. Smollusk is telling the truth."

Even without looking, I can sense her stare turn to me. Her hand somehow tightens even further on mine, enough to make me wince.

"See?" Smollusk says, apparently unaware of the tense situation. "I told you I was tewwing the twuth! But you were yewwing at me, big meanie."

"No. That—no, that's not right," Parallel Four says, her voice catching. I can feel her beginning to pull away from me, figuratively and physically. "You're taking this joke way too far, okay? I'm starting to freak out a little bit, but—I know I'm not an AI, I have these memories from—from when I was in the real world. The Parallel Canons, they're evil, and I'm not—I'm not evil, I'm Four. I know who I am. Eight knows who I am, right, Eight?!"

"You... You are..." But I can't get the words out. I can hardly breathe. I can hardly bear to look at her.

"Those memowies are copies from the weal Four," Smollusk answers for me. "You were the vewy first Pawawel Canon I ever made. Evewy part of you was a diwect copy fwom the weal Four, the memowies, the personawity, the pawette, evewything! But weal Four is way to disorderly, so you were way to disorderly, and that would not do. So I used you to make the second genewation of Pawawell Canons, with all your abiwities but none of that chaotic, carewess personawity. I didn't need you anymore after that, so I put you in stowage."

"That's not... That's not possible," Parallel Four says. "I'm the real Four. I'm the... I'm not an AI. I'm not a copy. I'm not. I would know."

"I don't know how you woke up fwom stowage. It pwobably has to do with all the wepwogwamming that Mawina has been doing. I guess I can't put you back into stowage now that you're awake."

"Shut up! I'm the real Four, I know I am! Eight, tell it I'm the real Four!"

"...N-no. You... You are not the... You are not..." I stop myself, biting my lip in an effort to keep from bursting into tears again. I can't do this. I can't take this.

"No..." she says, quiet and pained. "No, you're... No, no, no..."

She starts to tug her hand away from mine, but this time I’m the one tightening my grip.

"I am sorry, Four. I—I tried to—"

"I knew there was something," she says haltingly. "I knew that something was wrong, but I—I didn't want to believe—I didn't think... I didn't think... Not this..."

With an overwhelming surge of fear and guilt, I pull her to me, wrap my arms around her again like I can keep her forever. "I am sorry," I cry. "I wanted to tell you. But I could not, I—I did not know how. I tried, I—"

She pushes violently away from me, causing us both to stumble backward. Shocked, I stare at the wild, shaking figure of Parallel Four, my arms still open toward her. She takes a step away from me. One step, and it's enough to break something in me.

"You knew. You knew! You knew I was—how long did you know?!"

I struggle to take in another breath, frozen in a panic. I can do nothing but watch as whatever trust we had left shatters.

"ANSWER ME!"

"I tried to—I did, I tried—"

"What am I to you? You pity me, is that what this is?" She lets out a horrible sound, half laugh, half sob. "You pity me because I'm not—I'm not— That's what all of this was. That's why, that's—That's the answer. That's the answer to everything."

"No. No, Four, I—"

And then she vanishes. Smollusk vanishes. Everything around me goes suddenly black and deadly silent, leaving me alone with my screaming mind. 

Chapter Text

        I sit in that black void for a long while, in shock. Everything and everyone had disappeared, just like that. I can't see a thing. I can hear nothing but the sound of my breathing, too fast and too loud.

"Four...?" I say into the dark. I'm startled when my voice bounces back at me as if I'm speaking into a wall. I reach an arm out, but feel nothing.

I wasn't sitting before, was I?

I become aware of a weight around my head, a soft surface beneath me. Hesitantly, I reach up to my face. My hands are blocked by something cool and solid.

Oh, no.

I rip the headset off. I'm in my apartment again, seated on the couch in the middle of my dark living room. I'm in the real world.

"No, no, no..." I mutter, putting my headset back on. Nothing but blackness. I remove it, turn it off, turn it back on, and try again. Still nothing. I'm locked out.

"No, no, no, no!"

I throw the headset onto the couch and jump to my feet. In my muddled, frantic state, locating my phone takes me far longer than it should. I open it in a hurry to find hundreds of unread messages, the most recent from only a few minutes ago.

I go straight to Marina, ignoring the masses of texts from Four and Pearl. I'll deal with them later. Searching for answers, I quickly skim over the latest messages.

Marina - 3:20 AM
Eight, if you see this, please text Four. She's worried sick about you. I can't imagine how hard it must have been for her to find our numbers.

Marina - 3:31 AM
Eight, please text one of us back, I don't want to assume the worst.

Marina - 3:39 AM
Pearl says she was worried this would happen. For your sake, I hope you're not in the Memverse...

Marina - 3:43 AM
I'm kicking you out of the Memverse. I'm sorry. I know you feel bad for Parallel Four, but you need to be getting sleep right now. This isn't healthy.

Marina - 3:44 AM
The ban will lift tomorrow at noon, so you should rest up before then. Please.

I drop my phone and begin pacing circles around the living room. It's as I suspected, but that doesn't horrify me any less. Tomorrow at noon... Who knows where Parallel Four will be by then? What she could do?

My stomach twists as I realize what this must have looked like to her. She must have thought I got cold feet and ran away to where she couldn't follow. She must have thought I left her alone in her time of need. I have to get back in there, I can't let her believe I abandoned her.

I stop. I go to my phone, lift it in trembling hands, and I type a message to Marina.

Eight - 3:52 AM
Let me back in. I need to return to the Memverse right now.

Marina - 3:54 AM
Eight! Cod, we were all so worried about you! Thank goodness you're okay. Mind explaining why you were in the Memverse this late at night?

Eight - 3:55
I do not have time, take away the ban.

Marina -  3:56 AM
I'm sorry, but you need rest. You're not going back into the Memverse until tomorrow.

Eight - 3:55 AM
You do not understand, I have to return right now. Please, it is important!

Marina - 3:56 AM
What is so important that you can't wait til after you get some sleep?

Eight - 3:58 AM
Parallel Four found out that she is an AI. She took it badly. You kicked me out at the very worst time, I need to get back to her right now.

For a long while, Marina doesn't respond. With every passing minute, my terror only grows. By now, Parallel Four has had more than enough time to do something drastic. I can't waste another second.

I'm halfway through writing another pleading text before I see Marina begin to type again.

Marina - 4:04 AM
I've lifted your ban, but this isn’t over. We're having a talk after everything's settled. Go help Parallel Four.

Eight - 4:06 AM
Thank you.

I've barely typed that final text before I'm tossing my phone aside and dashing back to the couch. Too much time wasted. I could already be too late. Late for what, I'm not sure, but my anxiety-ridden mind has plenty of disturbing ideas.

I pull my headset on, power it up. To whatever shadow of relief I'm capable of feeling, the empty darkness fades away into the slightly less empty darkness of the Control Room. I've made it back to the Memverse.

...And Parallel Four isn’t there.

No! No, it's just the dark. It would be hard to spot her. Even with my training, even with her glowing eyes... I'm sure she's around here somewhere. She has to be.

"Four!" I call into nothingness. Silence is my only response.

"Four, I came back!" I shout, desperate. "I am sorry! I did not mean to leave! Where are you?"

"The Pawawel Canon weft."

I jump, looking up to see Smollusk hovering over my head. Its tone is grim, its expression what might be disappointment.

"Left?" I say. "Where did she go?"

"I hurt its feewings, didn't I...? I think it's mad at me..."

"Smollusk, where did she go?!"

"It took the ewevator back down to the Order Sector, but not before yewwing at me a bunch more... It was weally upset when you weft."

"Ohh, no..." I murmur, running my hands through my tentacles.

"Eight, why was the pwototype so angwy at me? What did I do?"

"What you did is call her 'the prototype’ and a Parallel Canon. You told her everything that she did not want to hear," I say. It comes out harsher than I meant it.

"But... I thought it was nice to tell the twuth..."

"Sometimes the truth is hard to accept. You did good by not lying, but you should learn to say things more gently.”

“I don’t know how to do that.”

“It will take practice. Marina can teach you. I am sorry, Smollusk, but I need to go find Four."

"Why?"

I look away. "Because she is my friend, and I need to know that she is safe."

"I don't think she wants to be found. Weast of all by you."

"Yes, I know. Bring me the elevator."

Smollusk doesn't argue any further. With a flash of gold, the Control Room's elevator appears in the center of the stage. Striding with purpose to mask my fear, I make my way toward it, Smollusk following at a distance. It stops just outside of the elevator, leaving me to enter on my own.

"Hey, Eight...?" It says, just as I'm preparing to initiate the descent.

"Yes?"

"If you... If you find it—her, can you tell the Pawawel Canon that I'm sowwy for hurting her feewings?"

"Her name is Four. She is not a Parallel Canon."

"Then what is she?"

"I do not know. But I know she is not that."

"I don’t think I understand, but… can you tell Four that I'm sowwy?"

"Of course."

Smollusk floats there for a moment longer, before it finally bobs up and down in what might be its version of a nod and retreats into the Control Room. The elevator doors slide closed. With that, I'm on my way to the bottom of the Spire.

That long, lonely elevator ride gives me far too much time to consider where Parallel Four might be, what she's thinking, what she's doing. I pace around and around the metal box, the steady rhythm of my footsteps the only thing keeping me grounded. Even that anchor is a flimsy one.

Right now, Parallel Four could be running to the far corners of the Memverse where we'll never find her. She could be taking her anger out on the residents. She could be taking it out on herself. She could be lying somewhere, completely alone, terrified and confused. She could be doing all manner of awful things at this instant, with no one there to help her. I should be with her. She shouldn't have to go through this on her own.

It feels like hours before the elevator rumbles to a stop. The doors can't open fast enough. I practically fly out into the Foyer the second I'm able, sprinting through as fast as my legs will carry me. I burst through the doors and into the Order Sector, where I'm forced to skid to a sudden halt before I collide head-on with Pearl. Startled, I stare wide-eyed at the inkling, then up at the others gathered before me. Marina is here. And Acht.

"Ayo! Slow down, Eight," Pearl says, stepping back. "Hey, where's P-Four? Wasn't she with you?"

"She—no, she ran away," I say, a bit overwhelmed. “What are you doing here?”

Pearl folds her arms, frowning at me. "Eight, you promised me you wouldn't stay here long," she says. “Do you know what time it is? What were you and P-Four doing in the Spire? How'd you get in there in the first place?"

Marina places a hand on her shoulder. "I think this can wait, Pearlie. We have more pressing concerns right now."

"Fine, yeah, you're right. But don't think for a second you're getting away scot-free, kid."

“This is all besides the point,” Acht says. “Parallel Four ran away?”

“Yes, she… She was very upset at me…”

“It’s going to be okay,” Marina assures me, though she doesn’t sound convinced herself. “We’ll find her.”

"We may, but—" I pause, staring over Pearl's head at the golden polygons that have begun to form behind her. It looks like someone is loading in, but everyone is already here...

Following my gaze, the other three turn to watch as the figure materializes in the middle of the Square. I recognize her the instant the golden shapes dissipate. It's Four. But her skin is brown, not silver. Her tentacles are gray like mine, not jelleton black. I can see her face. There's no red-eyed mask.

"Woahh! This is weird," Four says, without any synthetic filter. She spins slowly on her heel, taking in the world around her. No one says a word. Upon coming back around to face us, she smiles. "Hey guys, I made it!"

I look from Four, to Pearl, to Marina. They don't seem surprised to see her. I open my mouth, but Four answers my question before I can ask it.

"Yes, it's me. Real-Life Four," she says, walking toward us. "Your friends agreed to let me help, so here I am."

Marina nods slowly, pursing her lips. I get the sense it was more compliance than agreement.

Four's smile takes on a more devious undertone. "You didn't honestly think you'd keep me away forever, did you?" She continues. "This is my clone, after all. By the way, Eight, you're lucky this is an emergency or I would be beating the carp outta you right now. You have no idea how badly you scared me when you wouldn't answer any of my texts. You can expect payback within, say, two or three business days. Now, where's Parallel Me?"

Chapter Text

         "I do not know where she went," I explain waveringly. "All I know is that she came down here between the time that I was kicked and when I returned."

"We should check her room first," Marina says. "Maybe she's hiding in there. Do you think that's a good idea, Four?"

Four shrugs. "Maybe? This is my first time here, I have no clue where anything is or how much it would mean to me—or the other me. I won't be much help as far as guessing where she went."

"Oh. Right." Marina wrings her hands, staring at the ground.

"Her room is a good starting point," Pearl says. I nod in agreement.

For a minute, all is quiet. Everyone turns to Acht as they let out a short sigh.

"So who's going to check?" They ask. It’s obvious that they hope someone else will volunteer. Pearl and Marina seem just as reluctant, but I don’t blame them.

“I will,” I quickly answer to their relief.

"I'll come too," Four says, raising a hand. "No reason you should have to go by yourself."

I give her a look, but I don't protest. It's not worth it.

"We'll be out here if you need anything, " Marina says. "It's probably for the best that we don't all go. She'll be overwhelmed enough as it is, and it's not like she likes us..."

"Wait, is it a good idea to send Four in?" Acht asks. "You know, Parallel Four thinking she's the real one and all. She might not be happy about the reminder."

"I didn't come here to let you handle everything while I frolic around Minimalist Tortureville," Four says. "I can help, I am going to help, and you are going to let me help."

"She is the Four expert," Pearl says. "But call Marina's super-fresh high-tech virtual reality world that she spent years creating 'Minimalist Tortureville' again, and I'll let you help yourself to a beating."

"Just saying, it's no wonder Parallel Me went crazy here."

A dark look comes over Pearl's face, but I cut in before she can take this any further.

"Stop arguing," I say. "We are wasting time. I am going to find Parallel Four now, you can help if you would like."

I turn and start toward the Grizzco building without waiting for an answer. There isn't a word from the others as I make my exit, but I soon hear another set of footsteps following after me.

"She lives in Grizzco?" Four says, somewhere close behind. "That's awesome. I would totally do the same given the chance."

"This is serious, Four. Please be quiet," I reply.

"Yeah, I can see that. Sorry, I just assumed you'd prefer talkative Four over destroy-everything-in-sight Four. I gotta de-stress somehow."

"Four, I know you are upset—"

"Very. I'm very upset. Continue."

"—But this will not help Parallel Four. You will make her angry if you try to joke with her or take her unseriously."

"I know, Eight. I'm not stupid." Her voice takes on a bitter tone, a big change from her prior light-heartedness.

"I am sorry for not answering your texts, but—"

"Finally, there it is. And what else?"

I stop in front of the door of Grizzco, spin to face her. Her irritated expression melts away in the face of my fury.

"Stop," I tell her. "We can talk about this later. You are not the one who is going through a crisis of identity. You are not who I am worried about right now. I am sorry for whatever I did to upset you, but now is not the time to talk about it."

"This has been hard on me too, you know!" She retorts. "As if the whole AI clone thing didn’t freak me out enough, you forced me to watch from a distance while all of this fell to pieces, refusing to let me help! Every time I tried, you ignored me! Yet over and over you kept reminding me that I wasn't there, that I wasn't doing enough. I'm trying, okay?! So I'm sorry for offending you with my coping mechanisms!"

We stare each other down for a long while, enough that I begin to feel a trickle of regret for snapping at her. I know the others had to have heard that. This is not what we need right now.

"I... I am sorry," I finally say, softer. "I did not consider how this has affected you."

"No, no you didn't."

"This has been hard on all of us, but if we want to be able to help Parallel Four, we must calm down first. Please."

"Yeah. I'm sorry. It's—it's been hard. I didn’t want to make this about me, I just wanted you to apologize."

"I promise we can talk this through later. I will come to Splatsville, and we can speak in person. But now is not the time."

"No, it's not. You're right."

Another period of silence. Four no longer seems angry, just agitated. I suppose that will have to do. When she doesn't say anything more, I turn away and open the door into Grizzco.

Parallel Four is not here. Four and I scour the building, but all we find is an absolute catastrophe of a living space. It looks like a hurricane blew through here, knocking over boxes and books and smashing the screens of her arcade machines. Aside from several of Cipher’s items strewn haphazardly across it, her bed is the only thing in pristine condition, neatly made with no evidence of having been slept in in some time.

"Oh, Four," I murmur, picking one of her books off the ground. I smooth out the pages as best I can and set it back on the shelf. It looks lonely up there, with everything else now scattered around the floor.

"Something is going on that no one wants to talk to me about,” Four deadpans from the other end of the room. “Everyone acts weird around me, even Eight."

Concerned, I look over my shoulder at her. There’s a notebook in her hands, one of the ones we had given Parallel Four several days ago. She’s squinting at the open pages.

"Eight's usually weird, but not like this,” she reads. "I'm probably overthinking. I know everyone is worried about me, I bet that’s what it is. Ugh, this place is getting to my head. I don't know how Kensa fans can enjoy everything in black and white. How are they not insane? No, actually, that would explain a lot of garbage teammates... I need to get out of here before I become one of them." She stops, turning to meet my eyes. "Wow, Eight. You messed her up good."

I lower my gaze, ashamed. "You should not read that."

"Why not? It might give us a clue to where she is."

"We should respect her privacy. No one wants their diary read."

Four closes the notebook and tosses it onto the bed. "Fair enough."

"Well, Parallel Four is not here," I say. "We must keep looking."

"What're we gonna do if we find her, anyway?"

"I do not know, but I do not want to leave her alone. I will figure it out after I find her."

If Four is unsatisfied with this answer, she doesn’t voice her concerns. Without another word, we leave Parallel Four's residence and return to the others. Their hope is fleeting. We don't even need to report our findings, or lack thereof. I watch each of their faces fall as they realize that we've come back without Parallel Four.

"...I'll see if I can't locate Parallel Four with my computer," Marina says. "I'm not sure how long that will take, but it might be our best option."

"We can split up," Acht suggests, "Search around for her until you can pinpoint her location."

"Yes, I do not want to waste any more time," I say.

Pearl nods. "Sounds like a plan to me. Marina can try to find P-Four with her computer, and in the meantime, the rest of us search on foot. I'll take this way." She points to the northeast, off past the Spire. Acht, Four, and I follow suit, each announcing which directions we'll cover.

"Okay. Meet back here at sunrise," Marina says. "If you find Parallel Four, try to bring her back. If not..."

"We will find her," I say.

"That's the spirit," Pearl says, though I sense she shares Marina’s worry.

Four steps away. "Let's get on with it, then. Every second we spend talking is one we could've spent looking for Parallel Me."

Nobody argues with that. Each of us turns away, leaving Marina alone in the Square as we head out in our chosen direction. As we begin our search for Parallel Four, I can't help but feel a twinge of doubt. We are only five people. The Memverse is a big place. Chances are that Parallel Four doesn't want to be found.

I don't let those worries stop me. I leave the Square behind, weaving between empty, white buildings, picking through every street and alley I pass. I listen closely but hear no sign of Parallel Four. I call her name but get no response. The buildings all look the same. It's not long before the stress and monotony of my lonely search cause me to recede back into my mind, leaving my body to continue in the routine.

I recall Parallel Four's words, what she had said just before I was kicked from the Memverse. They echo as clearly as the moment she'd spoken them.

"What am I to you?" She had asked me. "You pity me, is that what this is?"

I barely had a chance to answer back then. But what would I have said? I had tried to tell her "No," like I don't pity her at all. I told myself I wouldn't lie anymore. She didn't believe me, so maybe it doesn't count.

That leads me to wonder, what is the honest answer? What is she to me? Is it nothing but pity for her that drives me to do what I'm doing right now? Do I care, or do I only feel bad? Does feeling bad mean that I care? These are questions that I simply cannot answer, that I cannot think too hard about if I want to be present to help Parallel Four. She will ask me again if I find her. I will tell her that I do not know.

Time passes. I'm not sure how much. The sky is beginning to change from dark blue to purple, signaling the beginning of a new day. Wrapping my arms around myself, I guide my attention back to reality like a creature lured by a trail of crumbs. It's time to go back. I didn't find her.

No, I haven't failed yet. Making the best use of what time I have left, I turn to walk in a new direction. I circle back toward the Square in a wide arc to cover as much ground as possible. I continue calling out to Parallel Four, though I'd be surprised if she answered. If I'm lucky, someone else found her, or Marina found a way to locate her. Luck, however, is not something to rely on.

Whatever had been pushing me on before has drained out of me by now. I'm left a weary, hopeless husk, running on the fumes of guilt. It's all I can do to keep moving. As I drag my feet along, I mull over the idea of leaving the Memverse and never coming back. No one could stop me. At the moment, it sounds kind of nice.

In this sorry state, the universe must take pity on me. I'm halfway to the Square when a distant sound reaches my ears. I freeze, listening close. I hear it again, barely audible, but unmistakably real. A voice.

It seems that's all I needed. Whether it be hope or something wilder, I'm filled with a sudden burst of energy. I give myself no more time to think, sprinting toward the sound at a frightening speed, the buildings of the Order Sector passing in a blur on either side. The voice grows louder, closer. It's shouting. Angry. And then I can make out words.

"SHUT UP! SHUT UP! I'LL KILL YOU!"

It's Parallel Four's voice.

I didn't know it was possible to run any faster, but somehow, I do. Terror, as it turns out, is a much stronger fuel than hope. My feet barely touch the ground. Whatever is going on over there, I need to stop it. I need to reach her.

"YOU CAN HELP BY—BY—BY NOT EXISTING!" Parallel Four screams, responding to something I didn't hear. "DON'T YOU DARE MOVE! I'LL—I'LL KILL YOU! I'LL DO IT!"

I skid around a corner, and there she is. With her back to me, she stands in the middle of the narrow street. She's shaking so violently that it's a miracle she's on her feet at all. Yet finding her here, panicked as a cornered animal, isn't what makes my blood run cold. No. It's the Order Shot she has pointing right at the real Four's head.

Chapter Text

        Facing my direction, the real Four is the first to notice me. Past Parallel Four, past the gun pointed at her, her eyes meet mine. They are wide and scared, those eyes. She is unarmed. She doesn't make a sound, but her pleading stare is so intense that I get the sense she's attempting to speak words straight into my mind.

That moment with Four doesn't last long. Following her gaze, Parallel Four whips around to face me. I barely have time to react. In the blink of an eye, her gun is trained on my chest.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING HERE?!" she exclaims. She turns her head from me to Four and back again, a desperate attempt to keep track of both of us at once. Dread wells up in my chest as I realize that we have trapped her between us. This will do nothing to calm her down.

Moving slowly so as not to startle her, I raise my arms in an imitation of Four. I pray she doesn't see my trembling. Forcing on a shoddy mask of calmness, I say, "Four, put down the gun. I am not going to hurt you."

She shakes her head vigorously, stumbling away from me as if I said the opposite. If anything, her fingers tighten around the weapon.

"NO!" she shrieks. "YOU SHOULDN'T—YOU SHOULDN'T BE HERE!"

Four takes a step forward. "You're not in a good place right now," she says, each word chosen with care. "I understand that you're—"

"YOU! SHUT UP!" Parallel Four interrupts, spinning to point the gun back at Four. That's enough to shut her mouth. She looks at me, her face ridden with despair. All of her efforts to help Parallel Four, it tells me, had been met with similar reactions. Anything she says or does will only make her angrier. It's up to me.

"Four, please," I say. "Look at me. I just want to talk."

Parallel Four twists around, facing me while keeping the gun trained on Four. "TALK?! FINE! LET'S TALK!" She snaps. "WE CAN TALK ABOUT HOW YOU LIED TO ME! YOU—YOU—YOU KNEW ABOUT—ABOUT EVERYTHING AND YOU NEVER THOUGHT TO TELL ME! WE CAN TALK ABOUT HOW I CAN'T TRUST YOU ANYMORE, HOW ABOUT THAT?!"

I wince, but I soon find myself nodding.

"Yes, I lied," I say. "I lied and it hurt you. For that, I am truly, deeply sorry. I will regret it as long as I live. But I will not lie to you anymore, that I swear."

"HOW CAN I KNOW YOU'RE NOT LYING ABOUT THAT?!" Parallel Four screams. "YOU TOLD ME YOU WERE MY FRIEND! YOU TOLD ME I WAS—I WAS REAL! YOU LET ME LIVE IN THAT IDIOTIC FANTASY ALL THE WAY TO THE TOP OF THE SPIRE, THEN YOU ABANDONED ME AS SOON AS THE TRUTH CAME OUT! YOU CAN'T—YOU CAN'T APOLOGIZE FOR THAT!!"

"I did not abandon you, I was kicked out of the Memverse! I would have never left if I was given the choice. I am sorry."

"STOP SAYING THAT! IF YOU'RE REALLY SORRY, IF YOU'RE REALLY DONE LYING, YOU’LL HAVE NO PROBLEM ANSWERING ALL OF MY QUESTIONS RIGHT HERE, RIGHT NOW!"

"Okay," I say. "Ask your questions."

Parallel Four goes quiet for a moment, surprised by my quick compliance. The respite doesn't last long. When the questions come, they come at full force.

"AM I A PARALLEL CANON?! AN AI?!" She asks.

"...Yes, you are. But—"

She cuts me off. "HOW MANY OF MY MEMORIES ARE FAKE?!"

"I would assume all of the ones from outside of the Memverse..."

"AM I FOUR?!"

I don't answer that one.

"AM. I. FOUR!!"

"I do not know! I am sorry, I do not know how to answer that one."

"WHO AM I?!"

"You are... You."

"GIVE ME A BETTER ANSWER!"

"I do not know a better answer!"

Finally, Parallel Four uses her Order Shot to gesture toward Four. "IS SHE THE REAL ONE?! IS SHE THE REAL FOUR?!"

That one makes me hesitate. "...You are not thinking straight," I say instead. "Put the gun away first, and then—"

"ANSWER MY QUESTION, EIGHT! OR I'LL SHOOT YOU!"

I flinch, looking away. I can see no good outcome from giving her the honest answer to this particular question, but not telling her may turn out to be even worse. This is so much harder than I prepared for. Overwhelmed, I look to Four for help. She understands. There's a flicker of uncertainty, but she nods.

"Yes," I murmur. "She... She is the real Four."

Parallel Four goes quiet for a concerningly long time. No one moves. No one makes a sound. Four keeps her eyes on the nozzle of the Order Shot still pointed at her. Parallel Four's hand is shaking so hard that I can't imagine she'd easily hit Four if she were to fire, but that does not mean she is safe. My eyes flit between them as I wait for someone to make a move. I catch Parallel Four moving her finger to the trigger. She breaks the silence with a furious, desperate shout.

"I'LL KILL HER!"

Grabbing her weapon in both hands, Parallel Four spins around, putting her back to me. My moment of hesitation lasts only a split second. I lunge for her. She screams, pulls the trigger, shouts in surprise as she's tackled to the ground. Jelleton ink splatters stark across the white street. My arms burn like acid, dripping black. I look around for Four in a panic. She's standing in a circle of white, unharmed save for a few droplets of black spray. She's shocked, but safe.

Parallel Four screams.

It's a horrible, gut-wrenching sound, something between a terrified wail, a shriek of frustration, and something more feral. She drops her Order Shot to writhe and claw at me, trying to free herself from our tangle of limbs. Though uncoordinated in her panic, she's by no means weak. I grab her wrists and pull back in an attempt to restrain her, but she kicks me hard in the stomach, the shocking pain giving her enough time to scramble away. I'm left on the ground with my arms wrapped around myself.

Parallel Four stumbles back into the wall of the nearest building, her movements erratic. "STOP!” she cries. “STOP, LEAVE ME ALONE!"

I spot her Order Shot lying only a few feet away from me. Lifting myself to my hands and knees, I begin to reach toward it. Just as my fingers brush against it, the weapon dissolves away into gold polygons.

"NO!" Parallel Four screams. I look up to see the gun reappear in her hand, lifting to point at me.

I see a dark look in Four's eyes. I hold up a hand, signaling her to stand down before she does something that will get her killed. I can tell she doesn't understand, but she thankfully doesn't question me. Parallel Four keeps the trembling gun aimed at me as I slowly get to my feet.

"I am sorry," I say. "I did not mean to scare you, but I cannot let you kill Four."

"DON'T—DON'T MOVE!" she cries. "I'LL SHOOT YOU!"

"I am not going to hurt you. Please put down the gun."

"I'LL DO IT, I'LL SHOOT YOU! DON'T TRY ANYTHING, DON'T—DON'T—"

I hold out my arms to either side, meeting her gaze. "Do it, then. Shoot me."

Four gives me a startled look, but I pay her no mind. I wait. Parallel Four doesn't shoot.

"Leave me alone," she says, much quieter. She doesn't sound angry this time, just scared. "Leave me alone or I'll—I'll..."

"I cannot do that, not until I know you won't hurt anyone."

I step toward her. This time she does shoot me. I inhale sharply as a shot of black ink hits my shoulder, staining my white clothes. It hurts, it hurts a lot, but it isn't enough to kill me. It's like I thought. I shake my head at Four before she tries to retaliate.

"That was your only warning!" Parallel Four cries. "Go away! I don't—I don't want to kill you, Eight, just—Just—"

"Just her?"

Parallel Four points the gun at Four once again. "She has to die! She—you don't understand!"

"I cannot let you kill her. I do not want to hurt you, Four, but you cannot do this."

"I CAN'T NOT DO THIS, EIGHT! YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT IT'S LIKE! YOU DON'T KNOW—YOU CAN'T—YOU—YOU—"

I begin walking toward her again, hands raised. She turns the gun at me, but I ignore it. She doesn't shoot.

"Killing her will not do anything," I say. "She will respawn."

Four visibly relaxes at that, but Parallel Four only gets more agitated. She doesn't say a word, but she's breathing so heavily that I can hear her even from a distance. She takes one hand off of the Order Shot to steady herself against the wall, shaking her head slowly. She looks down at the gun in her other hand. Her breath catches.

In the span of a second, I have closed the distance between us, tearing the weapon from her grip before she can react. With a screech of fear, she punches me in the face. I reflexively grab her arm in my free hand while I throw the gun aside with the other. My jaw throbs where she hit me, but I don't let it draw my attention away from the present.

"I am sorry," I say once again. "I will not let you hurt anyone, and that includes yourself."

I loosen my grip on her arm. She immediately pulls it away, but there is nowhere left for her to run. Clearly deep in panic, she opens a fist to summon back her Order Shot. I grab her hand before it can materialize and squeeze her fingers closed.

"Stop it! Stop!" She cries out as if I'm hurting her. "Let me go! Leave me—leave me alone!"

The pain in her voice is heartbreaking, but I don't give in. Not for this.

"I cannot," I say. "Please, Four. I want to help you. We want to help you. Let us help."

"You can't help! Not unless you get rid of her!" She points a shaking finger at the real Four, who is obviously struggling to remain still and quiet.

"How would killing Four would help?" I ask.

"If—if I—then—then I would be the only one," she stutters between breaths, lowering her hand.

"Would that fix anything?"

She is starting to choke up. "I would—would be the only—the only one..."

"Calm down, please," I say. "You are going to pass out."

"DON'T TELL ME TO CALM DOWN!" She suddenly exclaims, tearing her hand away from mine. "YOU DON'T UNDERSTAND! YOU DON'T GET IT! YOU'RE NOT—YOU'RE—YOU'RE NOT A COPY!"

"I am sorry, but—"

"I CAN'T LIVE LIKE THIS, EIGHT! I CAN'T BE A COPY! I CAN'T BE AN AI! I CAN'T, I—I—I CAN'T!"

"I am sorry, but killing Four will do nothing."

"HOW WOULD YOU KNOW?!"

"She will respawn, as I said," I answer. "It is impossible to kill her here. Trying and hurting her will only things worse. This is not the answer."

"But... But I can't," She says. "I have to, I—I can't—I can't be a copy..."

She lets herself slide down the wall until she's seated on the ground, pulling her knees up to her chest. I don't stop her.

"I can't... I can't be..." She says, voice weak and broken. With all the might of her fury spent, with all hope of a kinder reality lost, she hides her head between her knees and cries.

Chapter Text

        I've never heard Four cry. Really cry.

I never considered that until now, seeing Parallel Four curled up against the wall. It feels so wrong, all of this. She was always so strong. She was a rock unbeaten by the ocean's waves, steady in the face of disaster. I've always envied her that. But it seems even a rock will crumble after one wave too many.

It begins as little more than a few quiet sniffles between irregular breaths. She is too weak, too spent to truly cry, or that's how I take it. I kneel down in front of her, but I'm unsure of what else I can say or do. I don't know how to comfort her. I don't know how to fix this. I don't know if it's even possible.

"I... I am sorry," I say for what feels like the hundredth time. The words have little meaning anymore, but what else can I tell her?

At that point, Parallel Four must have found herself unable to hold back any longer. For she was not too weak to cry, as I soon realize. She was using every last ounce of her strength not to. A single choked sob escapes her at my words, and that one little slip is enough to topple all of her defenses.

In a frighteningly short amount of time, her soft half-crying gives way to heavy, racking sobs. She heaves for air before descending back into bouts of uncontrollable sobbing, so forceful that her whole body convulses with each one. The suddenness of her change quickly transforms my worry into fear.

"Four," I say sharply. She doesn't answer. I begin to reach for her, then hesitate. She had been so desperate to get away from me after I had tackled her. So scared when I grabbed her to take her weapon. She had looked at me like she expected to be hurt. I can't do that to her, especially not now. I lower my hand.

"Four," I repeat. "Four, listen. Please. Calm down, you are scaring me."

Still, she doesn't answer. She sounds more like she’s choking than crying.

"Four! Four, please. You are scaring me! Breathe!"

Parallel Four only continues to sob, already growing hoarse. I doubt she is able to respond if she can hear me at all. Despite being seated on the ground in as stable a position as one can get, she is beginning to sway. Her fists are tight around the fabric of her clothes. Though I can't imagine it makes it any easier to breathe, she only curls into a tighter ball, keeping her face hidden.

"Four!" I exclaim. "Four! Four, breathe! You need to breathe, please!"

"Hey, calm down. Both of you."

I look up. It's Four, the real Four. She hasn't yet moved from her spot several yards away, but when Parallel Four doesn't respond to her either, she hesitantly takes a step forward. She pauses there. Parallel Four doesn't seem to notice through her struggle for breath, so she continues. I watch her step over the splotches of black ink and make her way toward us, keeping a close eye on Parallel Four all the while. Even as she stops and crouches down beside me, Parallel Four doesn't react.

"Four," Four says. "You have to breathe, okay? You're going to pass out. We don't want that."

Parallel Four inhales sharply at the sound of Four's voice, somehow becoming even more tense than before. She doesn't speak, but she doesn't let out another sob either. She barely breathes at all.

"Hey! Breathe!" Four snaps. "I'll get way far away from here as soon as you get yourself under control, alright? Heck, I'll leave the Memverse. I'll leave and never come back. That's what you want, isn't it?"

After a moment, Parallel Four shakes her head. I think that's what it is. The movement is so slight that it’s hard to tell, but it is clearly intentional. I'm simply relieved that she's responding at all.

"Was that a no...?" Four asks.

Parallel Four breaks down into sobs again.

"Woah, woah. C'mon. Calm down. It's okay to let out your emotions, but you're crying so hard it sounds like it hurts."

"Four, she is panicking," I say. "She is not going to calm down because you tell her to. You might be making it worse."

It takes Four a moment to realize I'm speaking to her, at which point she shakes her head.

"Like you were doing anything different," she says. "I might not know what it's like to find out I'm an AI, but I do know what it's like to feel scared and alone. Four, other Four, at this point there's only so much we can do to make it better. You have to take the first step yourself. Calm down, take a deep breath. Talk to us."

Parallel Four pauses her sobbing to take in several gasping breaths, not exactly deep ones. But then, just before crying all the air back out of her lungs, she manages to choke out a single, hoarse word.

"C-can't!"

"There you go!" Four says in an encouraging tone. "A word! That's a start. Now breathe again, deeper. Don't gasp, you're not dying. You're fine. You're okay."

Parallel Four sucks in another breath with the ferocity of a drowning man. Even so, it seems just a tiny bit more deliberate than before, though it might be my mind playing tricks on me.

"I—I'm no—not!" She says. It's all she can get out before the sobbing takes over again.

"Besides the whole AI thing," Four says. "Don't think about that for now. Focus on controlling your breathing... Ah, scratch that. You can't not think about it, can you? Well... Focus on your breathing as much as you can, okay?"

"I— can't—can't breathe—"

"You're having a panic attack, so yeah, it'll feel that way. You have to try, though. Please."

"Can't!"

"Cod, well... Uh... Keep trying?" Four turns to me with a pained expression. She's much better at covering it up, but I see that she's just as overwhelmed as I am. Parallel Four only seems to be working herself into a greater panic. Neither she nor I know what to do.

I take a deep breath, force my voice to stay level. "Four," I try. "Can you hear me?"

She moves her head in what might be a nod. Whatever it is, it's enough of a confirmation.

"Can you look at me?" I ask.

She doesn't answer.

I reach out to her again, pausing to look to the real Four. She considers it for a second. She nods. So, carefully, I put my hand on Parallel Four's shoulder.

She flinches at my touch. She's shaking so hard, heaving with every breath. Every fiber in her body is tensed. But she doesn't lash out at me like she did before. Maybe she's simply too weak or too scared to fight back, but maybe not.

"Four," I say, giving her shoulder a gentle squeeze. "Look at me, please."

She doesn't.

"Four... Do you remember, in the Spire, after I fought the Parallel Canons? You know how scared I was... I thought you were going to be angry at me, that you were going to hate me forever, and that thought was so terrible that I felt like I would rather die than have to face you."

Four eyes me, a faint curiosity shining through her worry. I'm not sure exactly what I'm saying or why I'm saying it, but for whatever reason, it feels right at this moment. So I continue.

"But, Four, you called out to me. Not out of rage, but out of concern. You sat with me there for... I do not know how long, until I calmed down. You did not yell at me or show anger in any form. I... I am still wondering why, if I am being honest."

Parallel Four doesn't answer, but I feel her tenseness loosening ever-so-slightly. Whatever I'm doing, I guess I'm doing okay.

"I know you connected the dots before the Control Room. That is why you did not want to talk. You did not want to find out you were right."

She nods.

"But you knew after you saw the Parallel Canons. After you saw how I panicked."

She nods again.

"You chose to trust me anyway, and help me when I was hurting."

She takes in a shuddering breath. "St-stupid," she croaks.

"Maybe. I was not... I was not a good friend. And maybe you do hate me now, and I cannot blame you for that. But... I did care. And I still do. I understand if you no longer trust me, but if I can ever earn that trust back, I will not fail you again. What I am trying to say is that—"

"You don't care," Parallel Four interrupts. "You don't—you—you don't care, not about—about me."

"No! No, Four, I care," I retort. "I care for you so, so much. Do not say that."

"No, you—you care about her! The—the—the real... The real..."

She begins to sob again before she can finish her sentence, but I understand. I understand and it breaks my hearts. Four looks away, ashamed, though she must know this isn’t her fault.

I shuffle closer to Parallel Four until I'm mere inches away. I put my free hand on her other shoulder, and again she flinches, but not as strongly as before.

"Yes, I care about her," I say. "But I care about you, too. Would I have gone through all the trouble of finding you if I did not?"

She doesn't answer, continuing to cry.

"Eight's telling the truth," Four adds. "From the beginning, she wanted you to be happy more than anything else. I completely agree that she didn't go about that in the best way, but she does care about you."

"N-no. You're—you're—" Parallel Four starts, but again, she isn't able to finish her sentence.

I bite my lip. The memory of my attempt to hug her in the Control Room resurfaces, and how she had pushed away and screamed at me. I'm nervous to try again after that and everything else, but maybe that's what she needs. It's what I need.

I'll give it one last shot. I hug her.

And... She doesn't shove me away. She doesn't yell at me, she doesn't even wince. She lets me hold her, and maybe, maybe even relaxes a bit. I rest my head on her shoulder and pull her close, feeling the beginnings of tears in my own eyes.

"I do not care who you are, or what you are," I murmur, "You are my friend. I care for you, and I want to help you. Both of us do. I suppose what I was trying to say before was, I am here for you. I will stay by your side for as long as you need, just like you did for me."

"You pity me. That's—that's all this is," Parallel Four cries.

"No, that is a lie. I love you, Four. I love you. I loved you because you were Four, but now I love you because you are my friend, and we shared so many moments and experiences that the real Four and I never did. You are not her, no, but you are as much a person as she is. You are as much my best friend as she is. True, I have much sympathy for you, but this is not pity."

"I don't know if I can be—believe you..."

"You do not have to. Your belief is not what makes it true."

She doesn't speak, but her sobbing tells me that I got to her. Slowly, stiffly, the trembling ball of her body uncurls. And to my surprise, I feel her arms around me. I squeeze her tighter.

"I don't know what's—what's real anymore," she finally says. "I'm scared."

"This is real," I tell her. "We can start here."

Chapter Text

        It takes a long time for Parallel Four's sobbing to subside. I hold her all the while, listening for her breathing to slow, her cries becoming softer and fewer. Four leans against my shoulder, watching her Parallel counterpart with an expression of sympathy, despite her attempt to kill her not long before. I will never cease to be amazed by Four's capacity to forgive.

No one says another word until Parallel Four's shaking has become little more than a shiver, and her racking sobs only a shudder in her breath. By now, the sky is a lightening magenta. The sun is rising in the real world. The shadows of the surrounding buildings are beginning to recede, the first hints of morning light glinting off of black ink. Even those stains on the ground around us are starting to evaporate.

"You did good," I say. Even speaking quietly as I am, my voice is jarring after so long in silence. "Are you calmer now? Do you feel better?"

"I... I guess..." Parallel Four sniffles.

"You guess?"

"I... I guess I am feeling better. I don't... I don't feel like I'm going to die anymore, so... That's—that's something..."

"That is good. You had me so scared before."

"But I still don't feel—" She pauses, starting to choke up again. After a few deep breaths, pushing back the tears, she continues. "I still don't feel... Good. At—at all. I... I don't know..."

I give her a reassuring squeeze. "That is okay, it may take time. Do you think you can talk about it?"

"Not—not without crying... I don't think you can help, anyway. There's... there's no way to... To..."

She cuts herself off, but I feel her beginning to tremble again.

"Maybe we can't help, but there's no way to know for sure if you don’t talk to us," Four says, sitting up. "We saw you do way worse than cry. It's okay."

"Thanks for the reminder. Could you maybe... maybe go back to not saying anything...?"

Four sucks in a breath through her teeth, and the look on her face is enough to tell me she has millions of comebacks she'd like to make right now. By sheer force of will, she doesn't. Instead she says, through gritted teeth, "Oh. I thought you were over that."

"I need—I need more time, okay?" Parallel Four answers. "This is really... Really hard..."

Four's expression softens. Though Parallel Four can't see her, she nods in understanding. She says nothing more.

"She does have a point," I say. "Talking to us might help. Even if there is nothing we can do, it could be good to get it off your chest. I do not want you to suffer alone."

"Maybe, but... I don't know..."

"Can you tell me what you are feeling right now?"

Parallel Four doesn't answer immediately, but when she does, there is a tremble in her voice. "Scared... Scared and—and confused, and angry, and... I don't know, a lot of stuff... I don't know how to put it into words..."

"Why do you feel this way?"

"Why? Why?" Parallel Four scoffs, beginning to shake. "You know why, Eight. Don't make me answer that..."

"I am sorry. I do know what it was in general that triggered these emotions in you, but I want to understand exactly what it is about... about the discovery that is making you feel this way. I cannot change what you are, but—"

"I'm an AI, Eight! I'm not—I'm not—I'm not real!" She cries, her arms tightening around me. "You can't expect me to be okay with that! There isn't some secret underlying trauma for you to uncover, or some problem you can fix. I'm not real, everything I believed was a lie, and there's nothing I or—or anyone else can do about it. It's not that complex an issue. I... I don't want—I don't want to talk about this anymore."

"...Okay," I say.

As much as I don't want to believe it, I know she's right. There's nothing I can do. Nothing but sit here with her, wait for her to come to terms with this new reality on her own time. I wonder if she will ever be able to.

We return to silence. Beside me, Four bites her lip and drums her fingers on her knees restlessly. I watch her, concerned. She seems to be thinking hard about something. Finally, having come to a decision, she clears her throat.

"So I know you don't want to talk to me—" She starts.

"No, I don't," Parallel Four interrupts. "Please be quiet..."

"—Okay, but for what it's worth, I think you're real."

Parallel Four turns her head to look at Four from between my arms. "This isn't a matter of opinion," she says.

I too give Four a questioning look. She has to know that this can only make Parallel Four feel worse. But at the same time, this is Four. She's not stupid. She's going somewhere with this.

"You're right, it's not a matter of opinion," Four says. "Let me rephrase. You are real."

"Shut up. You're not going to make me feel any better by—by lying to me. I don't want to talk about this..."

"If you don't think you're real, then explain to me what counts as real in your mind."

"Are you stupid?" Parallel Four snaps, though there's a catch in her voice. "You know... You're real. And Eight, and Pearl, and Marina, and Acht... And the places I remember from the real world... But not... Not me."

She looks away, taking deep breaths in an attempt to keep calm. Whatever Four is trying to do doesn't appear to be helping, but I find myself curious to see what she's trying to get at. She seems to know what she's doing.

"Why not you?" Four asks. "You're here. You're talking to us. You obviously have a lot of emotions and thoughts and junk, I'd say you're pretty real."

"I'm an AI!" Parallel Four exclaims. "I'm a bunch of zeroes and ones floating around in some computer. I don't exist, not really! Whatever you're trying to do, just stop! You're not helping!"

"What are us 'real' people but a bunch of electrical signals going off in our brains?" Four says. "Not to get all philosophical, but I don't think your argument is entirely valid."

"You don't understand! I'm—"

"An AI. Yes, I get it, but I stand by what I said. I think you're as real as any of us."

"But I'm not the real Four!" Parallel Four cries. "I'm a copy! All this time, I thought—I thought I knew who I was, but—but—but all of it was fake. My memories are fake. I'm a fake."

"Why do you need to be the real Four so badly? It's not nearly as awesome as you seem to think it is."

"You don't get it, I thought I was the real Four! If I'm not that... If I'm not Four, who am I?"

Every word is driving her closer to tears. Her arms tighten even further around me, like I'm the last thing holding her above an endless sea of despair. It's admittedly making it difficult to breathe, but I could care less about that right now. I pull her closer.

"You can be whoever you want," I say.

"I want to be Four!"

"Well, you can't be me," Four says, "That's not possible. You can, however, be yourself. No one's stopping you."

"I don't understand!"

"Be your own person. Your own Four, if that's really what you want. You're never going to be me, and we can't do anything about that. But you don't have to be me. Get it?"

"No, I don't get it."

"I think what Four was trying to say is that you do not have to try to be someone else, but you do not have to try to take her place, either," I say. "Is that correct?"

Four nods. "Yeah, that's what I was going for."

"There can't be two Fours, though..." Parallel Four mumbles.

"And there won't be," Four replies. "You and I are two different people. Yeah, you were made from me, but you're clearly independent of me. We might share some memories, but we don't share a brain or anything. I'd probably have a much easier time getting through to you if we did."

"I guess..."

"We might share a name, and that'll get confusing real fast, but other than that I don't see a problem with keeping you around. As long as you don't try to kill me again, of course."

"I... I won't," Parallel Four says. "I'm sorry. But… It’s still not—not the same, being me, not being the—the real Four… I don’t want to be the… I don’t want to be the second one…"

"Four, listen," I say. “You are worth just as much as the real Four, and you always will be. I do not care where you came from. Like Four said, you are very much independent of her. You are not the second Four, you are not the fake Four, you are your own person. And I love you just as much.”

Parallel Four is silent for a time. Her trembling slowly eases, along with the tightness of her grip around me. When she speaks again, her voice is quieter, hesitant.

"Eight, what did you... What did you call me?"

"What do you mean?" I ask. “Four?”

"No… what did you call me when I wasn't around...? You called me Four to my face, but I know you didn't call me that with everyone else. Like... Like Four said. It would get confusing."

"We called you... Um... Parallel Four."

"Oh."

"Do you not like it?" I say quickly. "We do not have to call you that. We will call you whatever you want."

"I like being called Four," she answers. "Parallel Four is... It's not the worst name ever, I guess. It reminds me that I'm a Parallel Canon. But... I can live with it. There's probably no name that isn't going to remind me of... Of what I am."

"You can tell us if you think of something else. If you would like, we will only call you Parallel Four when it would be confusing otherwise."

"Yeah, I don't care if we share a name," Four adds.

"That would be okay..." Parallel Four says.

"How do you feel now?" I ask. "You are not shaking anymore."

"I feel a bit better, but... But there’s one more thing..."

"What is it?"

When she answers, her voice is even quieter, barely audible. "Am I... Am I really going to have to stay here forever?"

"I am not sure, but it is... Very possible. I am sorry."

"I don't want to stay here... I know my memories aren't—aren't real, but... They feel real. I want to go back to—go to the real world. This place isn't home. It'll never be home."

"I am sorry, I do not know. But... I promise I will try to find a way to bring you into the real world. And until then I will do my best to make sure you are as comfortable as you can be here."

"You'll really try?"

"Yes. Of course."

She doesn’t answer but hugs me tighter, a silent thanks. Maybe it’s all she can manage.

This could have turned out much worse than it did, and for that I'm relieved. But I know, deep down, that things will never be the same. Parallel Four will never be the same. I will do all that I can, but in the end, there is no way to give her what she truly wants.

"We should go back," I murmur. "The others will be worried about us."

"I'm not ready," Parallel Four says. "Stay here, just... Just a little longer. Please."

"I will stay here as long as you need."

After all of this, it’s the least I can do.

Chapter Text

        "I'm sorry," Parallel Four says out of nowhere. It's the tenth time I'd heard those words from her in the past half hour. I hadn't meant to keep count, but by the fourth apology, I was doing it subconsciously.

She, Four, and I had finally begun the trek back to the Square, though her reluctance to go is plain as day. Her pace is much slower than it could be, forcing Four and I to repeatedly pause as she lags behind. And she keeps apologizing.

"It's okay," Four says. "You've already said sorry, we already forgave you."

"I don't deserve this," she mutters.

"I agree," I say. "You deserve much better."

"No, I don't. I acted so... I acted horrible back there. I don't know why you're still waiting on me."

"You were freaking out. I'm not saying that totally justifies your murder attempt, but you weren't using your whole brain back then," Four says. "What matters is that you're out of that state of mind. I feel pretty safe now."

"We told you all of this already," I add. "Is there something you do not understand?"

"Maybe, I don't know. I'm sorry."

That makes eleven.

"It's okay to feel bad, but you can't dictate what Eight and I do," Four says. "Eight and I want to help and make sure you're okay, and you can't stop us. So there. No need to apologize for that."

"But why?"

"I told you this many times," I say. "It is because you are worthy of receiving help, and we care about you."

"I guess, but... Even Four?"

"Even me. Shocking, I know," Four replies. "You're a pain but you're growing on me, to be honest. It's too bad I won't see you again after today."

"...Wait, why not?"

"I thought you didn't want to see me anymore. Don't you want to be the only Four in the Memverse?"

"Oh, well... Um... I guess if you wanted to visit every once in a while, I... I wouldn't mind..."

Four and I share a look. A grin inches its way across her face. "Aw, you don't hate me! Eight, she doesn't hate me anymore. I'm so touched."

"You went through all this trouble for me," Parallel Four mumbles, "Even after everything I did... I can't hate you just cause you're the real Four. Which I am coming to terms with, slowly. It's weird having you around..."

"I love you too."

"I should be worried," I say. "If the Fours become friends, you will be too powerful together."

"Probably, yeah," Four says. "You're lucky I have no interest in taking over the world. Too much of a hassle."

Parallel Four snorts, and I soon find myself smiling as well. It's the first time I have heard her laugh in hours. For the first time in I don't know how long, I feel a glimmer of hope. A fleeting moment of... normalcy.

When Parallel Four speaks again, her voice is a bit less quiet, less wavering. "Hey, Eight?"

"Yes?"

"Are the others mad at me?" She asks. "Y'know, Pearl and Marina and Acht... I'm worried about what they're going to think when when we get back to the Square, once they... once they know what I did. I don't think they liked me much before, but now..."

"We don't have to let everyone else in on the details," Four says, "If that'd make it easier. I don't see why they have to know."

"That would make it easier," Parallel Four answers, though she still sounds uncertain.

"It will be okay," I say. "They know how hard this has been for you. And they do not dislike you, they were very worried about you as well. They came to help you without me even asking. And I know you did not mention it, but I told Smollusk that I would tell you: it wanted to apologize for breaking the truth to you so harshly. Everyone cares about you, Four. They understand."

"After everything I did and said to them... Cod, I feel awful..."

"Don't be too hard on yourself. I doubt anyone would've acted any different in your shoes," Four says. "Maybe not Eight, but you know Eight."

I raise an eyebrow at her. "What does that mean?"

"That you're too polite for your own good. Most of the time. With you it's either gonna be a nice and civilized conversation or, if you're unlucky, a straight up assassination attempt. There needs to be some in between, girl."

"I do not... Well, I have never actually killed anyone,” I protest. No one who couldn’t respawn, at least… Or wasn’t Sanitized…

"You've come close,” Four says.

Parallel Four sighs. "Don't I know."

"That happens only rarely! I am working on it. It is hard to break old habits..."

Four smirks. "I'm glad I met you after that became an 'old habit'."

"You're pretty scary when you want to be, Eight," Parallel Four adds.

"I do not want to be, so I should hope I am not."

"Eh. Not all the time."

"You have a very intense resting face," Parallel Four says. "It makes you look kinda angry all the time."

"I try not to look that way," I reply, pained.

"We know. We're just teasing," Four says, playfully elbowing me in the side. "Anyone brave enough to talk to you will quickly learn you're the nicest person around."

"When did this become about me, anyway?"

"Aw, we're embarrassing her," Parallel Four says. "We should do this more often."

"No, you should not."

"But it's making me feel so much better! I needed a break from talking about my issues."

I hesitate at that, causing both Four and Parallel Four to snicker.

"You said you wanted P-Four to be happy," Four says. "You wouldn't go back on your word, would you? Look how happy teasing you has made her."

"I would be smiling if I had a face," Parallel Four says.

I let out a long sigh, shaking my head. "You two are too dangerous together."

They continue with their jokes all the way to the Square, but I don't stop them. Though the teasing does begin to get on my nerves, I'm secretly happy to see Parallel Four feeling more relaxed. She seems more like herself now than she has in days. So I suffer through her and Four's bullying, poking back at them when I have the chance. The two always have a comeback at the ready; I never get the last laugh.

I realize that beyond my relief for Parallel Four, I feel... calm. Happy, even. Not just for Parallel Four, but for myself. The road has been rocky, and it may continue to be, but as long as I can have little moments like these... As long as I can have my friends, my family... I'll make it. Maybe Parallel Four will too.

We arrive at the Square to find Pearl pacing circles, Acht watching from against a nearby wall. I don't see Marina, but I can assume she's at her computer. We're hours past our sunrise meeting time.

"They're back," Acht announces, tipping their head toward us.

Pearl stops in her tracks, spinning on her heel until she spots us. "Eight! Cod, what took you— And Four! We were worried sick! Did you find P-Four?"

I look over my shoulder to where Parallel Four had attempted to strategically place herself out of Pearl's line of sight. She looks tense. I remember what she had said before, admitting her nervousness about returning to the others. I offer her my hand along with an encouraging smile. She takes it with a grip tight enough to ache, but at the same time, she seems to stand a little straighter.

"Yes, we found Parallel Four," I say, turning back to Pearl. "I am sorry that we worried you."

"Thank cod! Is she... Y'know... Okay?"

"Getting there," Parallel Four mumbles. I doubt Pearl could hear her.

"She's pretty chill now," Four says. "The three of us had a good long talk about how she's loved and valued and all that junk."

"That's great," Pearl answers rather awkwardly.

"We want to say sorry, for everything," Acht says. "I think that's what Pearl was taking her sweet time getting to."

"Hey now, I was gonna apologize! I don't need you to do it for me."

"It's—It's alright," Parallel Four says, a bit louder than before. "I'm sorry for acting like a jerk and yelling at you guys. You were just trying to help..."

Acht shakes their head. "You don't need to apologize. We handled the situation poorly, and it hurt you way more than you hurt any of us. Your reaction back then was completely logical."

Parallel Four doesn't answer, but I feel her hand relax slightly.

"Marina's in her office," Pearl says after a moment. "She's been trying to track you guys down for hours, she'll be happy to see you. And she'll probably know what to do about..."

"Me?" Parallel Four finishes.

"Uh, yeah."

"Let's go then," Parallel Four says. "I'm not sure what to do with myself either, honestly..."

"I am sure we can figure something out," I say, following Pearl toward the Ammo Knights building.

Parallel Four nods slowly, not quite confident.

Upon arrival, Pearl throws open the doors to Marina's office and calls, "Yo 'Rina, look who's back!"

And there's Marina, sitting inside, hunched over her keyboard. The various monitors of her computer are covered in maps, images, and windows upon windows of code. She lifts her head at the sound of Pearl's voice, sitting bolt upright when she sees who else standing in the doorway.

"You're back! You found Four!" She exclaims. "Thank cod, I've been trying to find you for hours! Thank goodness you're all okay."

"I am sorry that we could not return on time," I say.

"No, no, that's fine, I'm just glad you're all safe! So, Four, or Parallel Four, how is she doing? How are you doing, do you need anything?"

"I feel about as okay as I can at the moment," Parallel Four answers slowly. "I... I'm just not sure what to do from here. This is... A lot. It's happening so fast, I'm having trouble processing everything."

"I am so sorry," Marina says. "This is all my fault, I should've told you the truth earlier. I was... I was scared, I... Never mind. The excuses don't matter. If there is anything at all I can do to make it up to you, or just to make your life a little easier, say the word."

"It was all our faults. C'mon Marina, we've been over this," Pearl says.

Marina nods, clearly trying to avoid any further discussion on the topic.

Parallel Four is quiet as she mulls over Marina's words. After a while, she clears her throat. "Well... If I'm staying here full—full-time now, could you... could... Um, is it possible to change what I look like?"

"Oh, of course!" Marina answers without missing a beat. "It'll take me a while to build you a new model and switch it with your current one, but it's definitely something I can do. What were you thinking?"

"I... I don't know, I just want to look... At least somewhat normal. I want to have a face and normal skin... I want... I want to look like how I remember myself..."

"We can be twins," Four says. "It might get confusing if you look exactly like me, though. Make yourself cooler. Give yourself some tattoos or something."

"No tattoos. Not now, at least," Parallel Four says. "Make me look like an inkling again and I'll be happy. I just don't want to look like this."

"I'm sure we can figure something out. I already have some ideas," Marina says. "Let's work on it together later, okay?"

"That sounds nice."

"Is there anything else?"

"I don't know. I guess I'm living here now, but I have no idea what I'm going to do for the rest of my life... Just sit around? I don't have a job, there's nowhere to go, and there's no one here to talk to, besides you guys and Cipher... I have no purpose."

"You know, I've been thinking," Marina says. "And maybe it's too soon to ask, but... we could still use someone to be the head of Memverse security. If you don't want to, I understand, but it might give you something to do, and—"

"I'll do it," Parallel Four interrupts. "It sounds interesting enough... and that's what I was made for, isn't it?"

"Well, technically, but you are in no way obligated to take the job because of that. If you'd rather do something else, we can find something else for you."

"I can do security. Because I want to, and for no other reason."

"As long as you're happy. I can fill you in on the details later, and you'll have some time to think about it before we officially open the Memverse." Marina says. "Come to think of it, we could also use your help with the Memverse Restoration Project. We've been trying to clean up the place before we open it to new users, but we had to put a pin in it since... Well, we've been a bit too busy recently to continue. I think we can start it up again soon, though, and we could use a fresh pair of eyes."

"Cod, yes. I'll do that too. I have so many suggestions."

Marina smiles. "I appreciate it, I really do. I know this isn't how you wanted things to turn out, but... For what it's worth, I'll enjoy having you around."

Parallel Four nods. She has a moment of hesitation before saying, softer, "There... There is one last thing..."

"Of course, what is it?"

"It's not that this place isn't cool, but... I... It's just... This isn't... I’m sorry, this isn't my home. Cod, I... I want—I want to go to the real world. I don't want to stay here forever. I can be your head of security, and I'll help you fix up this place, but... I can't be stuck here for the rest of my life. If there's any way... If there's any way I can... Please..."

She trails off as her voice catches. I give her hand a squeeze.

"It's okay," Marina says. "I understand. I can't promise a quick solution, but I will promise that I'll do my best."

"Trust me, kid," Pearl half-whispers, leaning over to Parallel Four. "If Marina's giving it her all, there is zero chance you're not getting what you want."

I smile at her. "You will see the real world. It is now guaranteed."

"Thank you," Parallel Four sniffles. "I'm sorry for all the trouble, I—I—Thank you, all of—all of you..."

And then she begins to cry again. But this time, it's not purely sadness, and certainly not hopelessness. Yes, she will mourn the loss of the life she couldn't live, but the life yet to come has its own promise. She cries because she has that second chance.

By cod, I will make sure this second chance is worth more than its weight in gold.

Chapter Text

        I open my eyes once again to a bright and vibrant world.

When I had stepped into the Memverse two months before, on that morning of the day I met Parallel Four, I had found comfort in its blankness. Now that she has been given a say, however, the Order Sector of the Memverse has been transformed into something I never would've dreamed. I, along with Marina, Pearl, Acht, and of course, Parallel Four, had worked hours on end to bring her vision for the Memverse to life. Our work had paid off.

I'll admit, it was hard to bring such a change to the Memverse. But Parallel Four lives here, now; after everything she'd gone through, giving her this morsel of creative freedom was the least we could do. She was overjoyed to be rid of all that whiteness. Now the Square is painted in a rainbow of colors, graffitied over by Parallel Four herself, with trees and flowers blooming in abundance along the edges of the streets. Though we were all somewhat hesitant to go through with it at first, we have come to agree that this new Order Sector will feel much more welcoming to our Sanitized users.

If the transition was difficult for me, I can't imagine how hard it was for Smollusk. It protested the changes at first. This was its home, too, and it happened to like it the way it was. I can only assume it was lasting guilt over what happened to Parallel Four that convinced it to compromise. So while the Order Sector is now covered in all manner of colors, the Spire of Order stands as ominous and white as ever. It's ironic how out of place it now looks.

I can't say how the other residents of the Order Sector responded to the sudden changes in their world. Cipher might've been happy, but it's always hard to tell with that one. It didn't seem to think negatively of the change, at least. The other residents have yet to say a word, but they go about their daily wandering as usual. I don't think they care.

Needless to say, Parallel Four has had plenty of fun with the Memverse Restoration Project, but she always has more ideas. She wants so badly to make this place into a picture of the real world. She wants shops and restaurants, parks and arenas and whole new cities to travel between. But as much as we want her to be happy, we can't ignore the original purpose of the Memverse: to help Sanitized octolings. Trying to recreate the real world would only be a waste of time and resources.

She understands this. She's frustrated, but she understands. The Memverse was never intended to be the real world, and it probably never will be. It's been a difficult thing for her to accept. Today, if all goes well, that will no longer matter.

I step out of the way as Marina finally appears out of golden polygons beside me. She smiles when she sees me, her hands clasped together above her chest in barely restrained excitement.

"Sorry, I was doing a last-minute check-up," She says. "I'm ready now. Right, so you get Parallel Four, and I'll meet you guys at my computer. We got this!"

"Yes," I reply with a sharp nod. We'd been planning this day for weeks. We tried to keep it a surprise, but I'm sure Parallel Four has caught on long before now. At least she's been nice enough to pretend she hasn't.

Marina and I waste no more time on conversation. Striding with purpose, we head our separate ways. As Marina disappears into her office, I walk up to Parallel Four's front door, shut tight since the previous evening. It's not surprising that she's still asleep. Marina and I should be too, honestly. Our enthusiasm got the better of us. It may be early, but I doubt Parallel Four will mind being woken up once she finds out what it's for.

I knock on the door, take a step back, and wait. A minute passes. I knock again, wait again. For a while, there is no response; but just as I raise a fist to knock a third time, the door opens a crack.

"...Eight? What are you... What time is it?" Parallel Four says from somewhere within. Though her voice is hoarse from sleep, it lacks the synthetic quality it had once had. When Marina gave her her new model, her voice changed along with it, ridding her of the Parallel Canon's robotic filter. She likes it better this way. Admittedly, I do too.

"It is the morning," I answer her. "The time does not matter, this is very important. Will you come out?"

"Yeah, why not... I'm already awake. I'll be out in a minute, but this better be good..."

The door shuts, and I can't help but smile. This will be good. This may be the best thing I've ever had to wake her up for. I begin pacing in front of her door as I wait for her return.

Even with all of our accommodations and many weeks of recovery, it would be a lie to say that Parallel Four is back to her old self. She hasn't been the same since that night. I doubt she'll ever be the same. She is doing better, yes, much better in fact, but everything she went through has left its scars.

She's a bit more cautious than she used to be, more uncertain in her actions, not as quick to trust. Many times during the first weeks weeks I'd knocked on her door only to find her curled alone on her bed, crying. This new life has been hard for her. Over time those episodes have become fewer and farther between, but she continues to seek constant affirmation.

I remember how I was when I had just escaped the Deepsea Metro. So easily frightened, clinging to the familiar, which in that case happened to be Pearl and Marina. I used to wonder how it didn't annoy them, but I suppose I understand now. I spend hours upon hours in the Memverse to keep Parallel Four company. I've made it a rule to tell her that I love her at least three times a day. She pretends to be embarrassed by it, thinking I don't notice how she stands up a bit straighter.

Deep in thought as I am, I nearly miss the door reopening. Standing in the doorway is one Parallel Four doing a poor job of covering up her irritation. I can't find it in me to care about that. I halt my pacing and turn to smile at her, which apparently takes her by surprise.

"Good morning," I say.

"...It could've been," she responds with an exaggerated sigh, stepping out and letting the door shut itself behind her.

Changing her appearance was the first thing Marina had done after we'd gotten Parallel Four settled in. Though Marina claimed the new model may take over a week to build, she surprised no one by having it finished three days after Parallel Four approved the final design.

She looks much like the real Four now. She has the same tan brown skin, red eyes, short tentacles. She has a real face, thank goodness. The most major difference between her and Four is that her tentacles are slightly translucent, blue and pink to match the other residents of the Order Sector. I was surprised by this choice the first time I saw her; after all, it seems to serve as a marker that she's an AI, and I know how she feels about that. But she likes it. She thinks it's pretty. Plus, Marina found a way to allow her to change her ink color if she wants to. I guess all that matters is that she's happy.

"Ok, what's so great that you had to wake me up?" She asks, folding her arms. "I was having a crazy dream, but now I forgot it. Did you finally decide to give me that café I asked for?"

"Come with me," I say, taking her hand. "It is better than a café."

She lets me pull her along down toward Marina's office. I know I've got her curious, despite her continued act.

"Better than a café?" She fake-grumbles. "If you're going to wake me up like this on a regular basis, I'd like to at least have some virtual tea. I'd even take coffee, though tea is far superior."

"It is not. Anyway, you will soon agree that it is better than a café."

"You sound very sure about this. I don't think you understand how much I want some caffeinated tea right now."

"Marina can make you some, but I do not think you will care so much once you see what we have for you."

"Hm... Fine, now I'm interested."

"Oh please, you were interested before."

"Sure, I've been interested for the past week. You guys suck at hiding the fact that you're planning a big surprise. You're welcome for going along with it and acting like I didn't notice."

"Yes, thank you."

I pause to open the door to Marina's office. I release Parallel Four's hand, waving her inside before stepping in behind her. Marina turns away from her computer almost as soon as we arrive, a wide smile on her face. She's bouncing her leg rapidly, whether out of excitement, anxiety, or a mix of both. She has already worried about every little thing that could go wrong. It's not like a single failure means the end of all hope, but it would certainly ruin the surprise. I think she's hoping to impress Parallel Four.

"Hey, good morning!" Marina greets us, failing all attempts to sound natural. "Sorry to wake you so early."

"It's fine. Eight says whatever it is will be worth it," Parallel Four replies. "And if she's wrong, you owe me a café."

Marina gives me a startled look. "Wait, that's not—Okay, no, I'm sure we can work something out if it comes to that."

"It will be worth it," I say, both for Marina's sake and Parallel Four's.

Parallel Four folds her arms. "So when's the part where you tell me what 'it' is? The suspense is killing me."

"Right now, I guess!" Marina turns back to her computer, beckoning us to join her. "Come here. I've been working on this secret project for the past month, and it's finally ready for you! I'm sorry it took so long for me to make good on my promise, but..."

Marina doesn't even have to finish. "No...!" Parallel Four exclaims. I'm not sure if her shock is genuine, but her excitement clearly is. She begins bouncing up and down on her toes, clenching her hands into tight fists.

Marina nods, pulling up an image of the blueprints. "Yep! I made you—"

"A body!" Parallel Four interrupts again, leaning over Marina's shoulder as if she can't see the picture well enough already. "A real one! That is what this is, right? Tell me it is."

"It is."

"Oh my cod! No way!"

I grin at her disbelief. "Marina worked very hard on it. I have seen it myself, and it is very well-designed. I told you we would get you to the real world."

"No way!"

"That's assuming it works," Marina says. "But we won't know until we try, right?"

"Right now?!" Parallel Four nearly shouts.

"Yes, if you're up for it."

"Shell yeah!"

"Do you still want that café, Four?" I jokingly ask.

"Nah, you're taking me to a real one as soon as I'm out of here," she says, turning to jab a finger at my chest. "Too bad I don't have any money, guess you'll be paying."

"It will be my treat."

"It'll take a few minutes for me to hook up your code to the body, Four," Marina says. "I'd recommend laying down, it'll make for an easier transition if you're not moving too much. I have a cot set up over there."

Parallel Four stops bouncing but continues to tremble with nervous energy. "Oh, geez, okay," she says. "Not sure how well I'll be able to lie still, but I'll try my best."

"I will be going now," I say, opening my arms to her. "But I will meet you in the real world."

She jumps into my hug, nearly ramming her head into my jaw in her elation. I can't help but laugh. It's wonderful to see her this happy.

"See you there!" She says.

I sit alone and silent on the floor in Marina's workshop. Not truly alone, I suppose, but it certainly feels that way. Marina is slumped over against the wall beside me, about as empty as the robotic body lying on the table in the middle of the room. She has her headset on. I imagine her in the Memverse, typing away at her computer while Parallel Four lies in wait nearby.

It’s all a part of the plan. Though Marina could have connected Parallel Four to her body just as easily from her computer in the real world, we had both agreed that it would be better for her to stay, giving Four some company as well as a heads-up before initiating the transition. Likewise, we agreed that it would be better for me to wait in the real world so Parallel Four would have someone right there to meet her when she wakes up. I had stayed the night here at Houzuki Mansion for this very reason. Pearl is a part of the plan too, of course. She's making breakfast as we speak.

I tap my foot as I wait, watching the robot for any signs of movement. It stares at the ceiling with hollow eyes, too closely resembling a corpse for my comfort. That being said, it's incredibly detailed. Marina did an incredible job. It looks just like Parallel Four, albeit with a few visible joints and seams. You would have to look closely to tell that it's covered in rubber and not flesh. At the moment, however, its realism only makes it look more like a dead body. Hopefully it won't be so unsettling once it becomes Parallel Four.

Its fingers twitch just then, causing me to jump. I watch, cautious, as the robot's hands slowly close into fists and then open again. It blinks. Turns its head.

"Four?" I say, getting to my feet.

"Eight?" She responds. Her voice has a bit of a synthetic twang coming through the robot, but not to the same degree that she had once had as a Parallel Canon.

Hearts leaping, I rush over to the table. "Are you alright? Is it working?"

"I think so... This is the real world, yeah? Everything went black for a while, I thought I'd died."

"This is the real world," I say breaking out into a grin. "You made it."

"Oh, cod. This is crazy." She closes her eyes, sighing. "Give me a minute. I feel like I just had my entire nervous system surgically removed."

I turn away as I catch movement out of the corner of my eye. Marina has returned. She sits up, sets her headset down beside her, and scrambles to her feet. Rushing to join me at the table, she asks, "Did it work?"

"Mm-hmm," Parallel Four answers. "Cod, who knew having my consciousness transferred into a physical body would be so exhausting?"

Marina immediately perks up, sighing in relief. "It's working! This is great! Can you move alright?"

Parallel Four lifts an arm off the table and gives her a thumbs-up.

"Can you sit up?"

She groans, but she opens her eyes and pushes herself up into a sitting position. Only then does she get a good look at her new body. She stretches out an arm in front of her, moving each finger individually. She stretches out her legs, then rotates her torso, testing out each joint. She whistles appreciatively.

"Dang, this is impressive," she says, shuffling around on the table until she's facing Marina and me. "This only took you a month?"

Marina rubs the back of her neck, embarrassed by the praise. "A little over a month, yes. I worked on it every day. Maybe a few nights, too... Can you try to stand?"

Parallel Four nods, carefully lowering herself to the ground. Slowly, she lets go of the table. She's a bit shaky at first, but she quickly regains her balance. She walks a few steps, turns around, and walks back.

Marina smiles. "Great, it looks like it's all in working order. Congratulations, Four!"

"It feels so... right," Parallel Four says, looking down at her hands. "You got every joint, everything. It's... It's insane."

"This body is probably the most complex machine I've ever built," Marina says, her smile slowly falling. "That being said, there are a few... Drawbacks."

Parallel Four looks up. "What are they?"

"For one, this body doesn't have a swim form. I'm sorry, but if I ever find a way to give you a swim form, I'll be sure to do it. It's a hard function to replicate."

"That's understandable."

"In general, the more moving pieces there are in a machine, the more likely it is that one will break. I wanted to make your body feel as natural as possible, but as you noticed, it has quite a few joints. Because of that... Well, your body's not going to be as hardy as an organic one. I would say stay away from anything that requires extensive physical exertion, so... No ink sports. I'm sorry."

"Also understandable. I'm not sure how I would've played ink sports without a swim form anyway."

"Lastly... As I said, your body has a lot of moving pieces that could become damaged, so... So I'm going to ask that you stay around Inkopolis. I need to be sure you can get to me quickly if anything were to happen. And I'd like to be able to check up on you every once in a while, just to be safe. I'm really sorry. I—"

"It's for the best," Parallel Four cuts in. "I understand. It's okay."

"I know, I'm just sorry that it's not... perfect."

"I think it is. You went above and beyond with this thing, thank you so much."

Then, to Marina's shock, Parallel Four hugs her. Her lip begins to tremble. She responds with a nod, likely unable to speak without bursting into tears.

"Hey, Four," I say quickly, hoping to spare Marina the embarrassment.

To Marina's relief, Parallel Four lets go of her and turns to me instead. "Huh?"

"If you are going to live Inkopolis anyway, I have missed having a roommate."

"Me too," she says.

"I already have a room prepared if you would—"

"Yes, that was me saying yes. I'd love it. I can’t promise you’ll enjoy it as much, though."

"I will."

"I think we need to celebrate this momentous occasion. You got plans for today?"

"Some," I say. "Four is coming to Inkopolis today. She wanted to see you in your new body. Maybe we could all go out to that café later, I know a few good ones. For the most part we thought we'd leave it up to you."

"That sounds amazing. Been a while since I've seen my fellow Four. Maybe if we join forces we can finally convince you that tea is better than coffee."

"That will not ever happen."

Parallel Four snickers at that. We both know they're going to try it anyway. Oh, well.

"You can’t celebrate on an empty stomach. Pearl is making— Pearl's making pancakes if you'd like to— to join us for breakfast," Marina says in a wobbling voice. Apparently giving her a break from Parallel Four had done little to help, as she still appears to be struggling hard to keep the tears in.

"I can eat food in this body?" Parallel Four asks, lighting up.

"Y-yes, and drink. Assuming it works correctly."

"Then I'd love nothing more. And again, thank you so, so much. I don't think I'm doing a good job of expressing how grateful I am, but I'm literally more grateful than I've ever been in my entire life. I'm probably the most grateful person on the face of the earth right now. Thank you for this. I owe you big time."

Marina covers her face. "Cod, no, you don't owe me anything. Are you trying to make me cry?"

"You gotta say you're welcome. C'mon man, it's basic manners."

"You're—you're welcome."

"Perfect!" Parallel Four says with a grin. "The real world better watch out, P-Four's in the house! Let's go eat some pancakes."

. . . . .